US STOCKS-Wall Street climbs as Fed meeting kicks off

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* Apple rises ahead of virtual product launch
* Tesla gains for fifth straight session
* Carnival Corp falls after warning of $3 bln quarterly loss
* Indexes up: Dow 0.45%, S&P 0.91%, Nasdaq 1.53%

(Updates to open)
By Medha Singh and Devik Jain
Sept 15 (Reuters) - Tech stocks pushed Wall Street higher on
Tuesday as positive U.S. factory data fueled optimism around an
economic rebound, while investors looked for more stimulus from
the Federal Reserve as the central bank kicks off a two-day
meeting.
The tech index .SPLRCT jumped 1.6% as it continued to
recover from a brutal sell-off earlier this month that knocked
the S&P 500 and Nasdaq off their all-time highs.
Apple Inc AAPL.O rose 2.5% ahead of a virtual product
launch, where it is expected to unveil updated watches and
iPads, but no iPhones. In its first policy meeting since Fed Chair Jerome Powell
announced a more accommodative stance on inflation, the central
bank could switch its Treasury purchases toward more long-dated
debt to keep long-term yields low, some strategists said.
"The market is getting a tailwind from expectations the Fed
will continue to keep interest rates historically low," said
Sam Stovall, chief investment strategist at CFRA in New York.
"It makes the intrinsic value models point to very high
returns for the stock market in the year ahead."
Expectations from the Fed have increased amid a stalemate in
talks for fiscal relief and economic reports suggesting an
uneven recovery from the coronavirus-induced recession.
Data on Tuesday showed U.S. factory output increased
strongly in August. Separately, U.S. import prices increased
more than expected for the same month, supporting the view that
inflation pressures were building up. Earlier in the day data showed China's industrial output
accelerated the most in eight months in August.
At 9:56 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI was
up 125.30 points, or 0.45%, at 28,118.63, the S&P 500 .SPX was
up 30.93 points, or 0.91%, at 3,414.47. The Nasdaq Composite
.IXIC was up 168.81 points, or 1.53%, at 11,225.46.
Tesla Inc TSLA.O jumped 5%, rising for the fifth day, as
anticipation heats up for its "Battery Day" event next week,
where Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk is expected to tout the
latest improvements in the electric-car maker's battery
technology.
Carnival Corp CCL.N dropped 8.5% after it warned of a
quarterly loss of $2.9 billion, as the COVID-19 pandemic brought
the cruise industry to a virtual standstill. Advancing issues outnumbered decliners for a 1.99-to-1 ratio
on the NYSE and a 1.89-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.
The S&P index recorded 14 new 52-week highs and no new low,
while the Nasdaq recorded 42 new highs and four new lows.