US STOCKS-Wall Street set to rise on stimulus hopes; Fed meet in focus

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* Apple rises on report of higher iPhone production in 2021
* Technology sector seen resilient through pandemic -
analyst
* Futures up: Dow 0.5%, S&P 500 0.6%, Nasdaq 0.6%

(Adds comment, updates prices)
By Ambar Warrick and Shreyashi Sanyal
Dec 15 (Reuters) - U.S. stock indexes were set to gain on
Tuesday as progress toward a massive government spending bill
and COVID-19 relief measures kept spirits high, while investors
awaited new economic cues from the Federal Reserve's final
meeting of the year.
Talks in Congress were underway late on Monday to agree on a
bill to avert a government shutdown, with Democrat and
Republican leaders appearing more upbeat about including a fresh
round of coronavirus aid, the first new relief measure since
April. Markets have moved in tandem with news on a relief bill,
which is expected to further offset the economic impact of the
virus outbreak and keep liquidity high.
But concerns over the timing of the bill, as well as a spike
in the U.S. coronavirus-related death toll pushed the S&P 500 to
a four-day losing streak on Monday, despite optimism over the
launch of a nationwide vaccination program.
"There is a likelihood of some amount of stimulus to be
passed, but investors are really hopeful of a stronger response
to the current situation," said Rick Meckler, partner at Cherry
Lane Investments in New Jersey.
Still, increased cash and ultra-low lending rates have seen
investors flocking to stocks for returns through the COVID-19
pandemic, with the technology sector benefiting the most.
"The time-tested big tech names have shown their ability to
weather the storm, even during some very tough times with the
virus, so investors see them as names that can survive any
potential shutdowns and still do well when things go back to
normal," Meckler added.
The Fed is expected to maintain interest rates at near-zero
during its two-day meeting starting later on Tuesday and signal
it will stay there for years to come. The recent coronavirus
vaccine roll-out is also expected to improve the bank's 2021
outlook. U.S. S&P 500 E-minis EScv1 were up 23 points, or 0.63%, at
08:04 a.m. ET. Dow E-minis 1YMcv1 were up 149 points, or
0.50%, while Nasdaq 100 E-minis NQcv1 were up 76 points, or
0.62%.
Moderna Inc's MRNA.O shares rose about 1% before the bell
after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration staff members did
not raise new concerns over data on the drugmaker's COVID-19
vaccine, preparing the way for the U.S. authorization of a
second vaccine. Apple Inc AAPL.O rose more than 1.5% after a report said
it plans to increase iPhone production by 30% in the first half
of 2021. Eli Lilly and Co LLY.N rose 2.1% after the company said it
would buy Prevail Therapeutics Inc PRVL.O in a deal
potentially valued at $1.04 billion, to expand its presence in
the lucrative field of gene therapy. Prevail's shares surged
about 83.0%.