Wall Street may start Wednesday's session higher, though the eventual trend depends on what the Federal Reserve has to relay through its monetary policy statement due in the afternoon. After Asian stocks closed mostly higher, positive earnings and economic data are giving a lift to stocks across the Atlantic. The dollar is currently mixed, as commodities are mostly firmer. The yield on the benchmark 10-year bonds is higher. Although no change is expected in interest rates at the current meeting, traders are likely to sift through the statement to see if interest rate normalization is imminent.
At 6:15 am ET, the Dow futures are rising 39 points, the S&P 500 futures are adding 4.25 points and the Nasdaq 100 futures are up 10.50 points.
U.S. stocks snapped a 5-session losing streak and advanced solidly on Tuesday, helped by bargain hunting.
On the economic front, The FOMC is scheduled to release its post-meeting monetary policy statement at 2 pm ET.
Ahead of the Fed decision at 10 am ET, the National Association of Realtors is due to release its pending home sales index for June. Economists expect the index to rise 1 percent month-over-month following a 0.9 percent increase in May. The Energy Information Administration will release its weekly petroleum status report for the week ended July 24th at 10:30 am ET.
In corporate news, Twitter reported second quarter adjusted earnings and revenues that exceeded expectations and raised the low end of its 2015 revenue guidance, which is above the consensus estimate.
United Steel (X) reported a wider than expected loss and below-consensus revenues for its second quarter. The company cautioned that if the current pace of commercial improvement in its markets does not improve, it expects to be the near the low end of its guidance range. Akamai Technologies' (AKAM) second quarter adjusted earnings per share missed estimates, while its revenues bettered expectations.
IAC (IACI) reported better than expected second quarter earnings, while its revenues trailed estimates.
Gilead's (GILD) second quarter results trumped estimates and the company raised its full year net products sales guidance. Edward Lifesciences (EW) also reported better than expected second quarter results and raised its full year adjusted earnings per share guidance.
Boston Properties (BXP), Callaway Golf (ELY), CBL & Associates (CBL), Cloud Peak Energy (CLD), Crocs (CROX), Facebook (FB), Hannover Insurance (THG), HealthSouth (HLS), Lincoln National (LNC), Manitowoc (MTW), Marriott (MAR), MetLife (MET), O'Reilly Auto (ORLY), Public Storage (PSA), Unum Group (UNM), Western Digital (WDC), Whole Foods (WFM), Williams Companies (WMB) and Wynn Resorts (WYNN) are among the companies due to release their quarterly results after the close of trading.
Most Asian markets ended higher, tracking the strong lead from Wall Street overnight and the rally in the Chinese market. However, the Japanese, South Korean and Taiwanese markets ended modestly lower.
Australia's All Ordinaries opened higher and rallied strongly in early trading before moving roughly sideways. The index ended up 38.60 points or 0.69 percent at 5,610. China's Shanghai Composite Index rallied 126.17 points or 3.44 percent before ending at 3,789. The rebound came about as authorities signaled that they are willing to take steps to avert systematic risks. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index ended up 115.51 points or 0.47 percent at 24,620.
Meanwhile, the Japanese market showed nervousness ahead of the FOMC decision and was also impacted by some corporate results. The Nikkei 225 average languished below the unchanged line for the bulk of the session before ending down 25.98 points or 0.13 percent at 20,303.
On the economic front, a report released by Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry showed that retail sales rose 0.9 percent year-over-year in June, smaller than the 1.1 percent growth expected by economists. Sales of large retailers slid 0.3 percent.
After a strong start, European stocks saw some volatility in early trading. Nevertheless, the averages are currently advancing, as traders digest a slew of domestic earnings and German consumer confidence data ahead of the FOMC announcement.
In corporate news, German chemical company Bayer reported better than expected second quarter earnings, helped by strong drug sales and forex gains. French oil giant Total's second quarter earnings exceeded forecasts on cost cuts and higher refining margins. Smaller U.K. peer Tullow Oil reported a decline in its revenues for the first half of the year, although operating profits climbed notably. Barclays (BCS) reported higher second quarter profits.
Among automakers, Volkswagen reported higher profits for its second quarter on improving European auto market, but lowered its sales guidance for the full year, citing weakness in China. Peugeot Citroen reversed to a profit in its first half of the year.
On the economic front, a forward looking indicator measuring confidence among German consumers is expected to come in at 10.1 in August, the same as in July, according to the results of a survey by the GfK. This was in line with expectations.
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