Intel stock spikes after report of possible US government stake
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* Fed policy decision expected at 2:00 p.m. ET
* FedEx tumbles 13%, UPS down 1%
* Adobe down after tepid revenue forecast
* Indexes down: Dow 0.22%, S&P 0.30%, Nasdaq 0.31%
(Updates to open)
By Medha Singh
Sept 18 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks came under pressure on
Wednesday after FedEx issued a profit warning, while investors
waited for the Federal Reserve's decision on interest rates in
what has been a rocky week for global markets.
Shares of the package delivery company FDX.N tumbled 13%
and were on course for their sharpest one-day percentage drop
since the financial crisis after the company blamed U.S.-China
trade tensions and its split with Amazon.com Inc AMZN.O for
its dismal full-year profit forecast. The stock was the biggest drag on the S&P 500 .SPX index
and drove a 1.4% drop in shares of rival United Parcel Service
Inc UPS.N . The broader industrial sector .SPLRCI was off
0.57%.
Investors will also focus on the Fed's policy statement,
which is due at 2:00 p.m. ET (1800 GMT), followed by Chair
Jerome Powell's address a half hour later.
The central bank is expected to lower interest rates by a
quarter percentage point for the second time in three months,
but a deep divide among policymakers has seen traders abandon
all bets on a third reduction this year.
"The focus is going to be on the policy statement,
specifically, whether or not he gives any indication if this is
a shift in policy or another mid-cycle rate cut," said Robert
Pavlik, chief investment strategist and senior portfolio manager
at SlateStone Wealth LLC in New York.
Shares of interest-rate sensitive banking index .SXPBK
slipped 0.35% and were on pace for a third day of losses.
Expectations of lower rates have spurred a Wall Street rally
this year, with the benchmark S&P 500 .SPX now about 1% below
its all-time high hit in July.
Equity markets took a hit on Monday after attacks on Saudi
Arabia's largest oil refinery sparked concerns about a supply
shortage, leading to a spike in oil prices. However, a
reassurance by Saudi Arabia that it would quickly to restore
full production calmed investor nerves.
At 9:50 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI was
down 58.42 points, or 0.22%, at 27,052.38, the S&P 500 .SPX
was down 9.10 points, or 0.30%, at 2,996.60. The Nasdaq
Composite .IXIC was down 25.38 points, or 0.31%, at 8,160.64.
Ten of the 11 major S&P sectors were lower, with only
utilities .SPLRCU moving marginally higher.
Adobe Inc ADBE.O fell 4.5% after the Photoshop software
maker forecast tepid revenue for the current quarter.
Declining issues outnumbered advancers for a 1.41-to-1
ratio on the NYSE and a 1.42-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.
The S&P index recorded six new 52-week highs and one new
low, while the Nasdaq recorded 19 new highs and 12 new lows.