US stock futures dip as Trump’s firing of Cook sparks Fed independence fears
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* Fed expected to keep rates low for prolonged period
* FedEx jumps on bigger-than-expected quarterly profit
* Boeing down after U.S. House panel's report on 737 MAX
crashes
* Indexes up: Dow 0.42%, S&P 500 0.40%, Nasdaq 0.27%
(Updates to open)
By Shreyashi Sanyal
Sept 16 (Reuters) - Wall Street's main indexes rose on
Wednesday as investors hoped the Federal Reserve would continue
to keep interest rates low for a prolonged period, with upbeat
quarterly results from FedEx also boosting sentiment.
The central bank's two-day meeting is its first under a
newly adopted framework that promises to shoot for inflation
above 2% to make up for periods where it is running below that
target. The Federal Open Market Committee will release its policy
statement and economic projections at 2 p.m. ET (1800 GMT),
followed by Fed Chair Jerome Powell's virtual news briefing half
an hour later. "The Fed has made abundantly clear that policy rates will
remain pinned near zero for as far as the eye can see," said
Seema Shah, chief strategist at Principal Global Investors.
"Yet, markets will be impatient for additional guidance on
how they will utilize their broader toolkit if they want
inflation to hit 2% over the forecast horizon, let alone
overshoot it."
Wall Street's main indexes have bounced after a tech-driven
slump that pushed the Nasdaq Composite index .IXIC into
correction territory in just three sessions.
After declining for two weeks in a row, the benchmark S&P
500 .SPX has rebounded 1.8% in the past two sessions, but
mixed data has kept investors on edge about the pace of an
economic recovery.
Latest figures showed U.S. consumer spending slowed in
August, with a key retail sales gauge unexpectedly declining.
At 10:09 a.m. ET the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI was
up 116.75 points, or 0.42%, at 28,112.35, the S&P 500 .SPX was
up 13.47 points, or 0.40%, at 3,414.67 and the Nasdaq Composite
.IXIC was up 30.71 points, or 0.27%, at 11,221.04.
Eight of the 11 S&P sectors gained in early trading, with
the S&P 500 technology subindex .SPLRCT edging up 0.1%.
Delivery firm FedEx Corp FDX.N jumped 7.2% after reporting
a bigger-than-expected quarterly profit, helped in part by price
hikes and lower fuel costs. Shares in rival United Parcel
Service Inc UPS.N gained 1.1%.
Boeing Co BA.N dipped 0.2%, after a U.S. House panel
concluded that two 737 MAX crashes were the "horrific
culmination" of failures by the planemaker and the Federal
Aviation Administration. Apple Inc AAPL.O dropped 0.6%, after ending the previous
session marginally higher, as it rolled out a new virtual
fitness service and a bundle of all its subscriptions, Apple
One. Eastman Kodak Co KODK.N jumped 63.6% after a law firm
hired by the photography equipment maker said its chief
executive officer's securities transactions around the time the
company learned it could receive a $765 million government loan
did not violate internal policies. Advancing issues outnumbered decliners for a 2.71-to-1 ratio
on the NYSE and a 2.88-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.
The S&P index recorded 16 new 52-week highs and no new low,
while the Nasdaq recorded 45 new highs and seven new lows.