(MENAFN- ProactiveInvestors) U.S. stock futures were lower in early trading Wednesday as the wait on this afternoon's Fed policy statement is nearing its end with many investors expecting the central bank to remove the word "patient" from its statement leaving the door wide open for a rate hike in June.
Futures on the three major US indexes were down between 0.4% and 0.5% premarket after the Dow fell 128 points on Tuesday its eighth triple digit move in the past 11 sessions.
The Fed policy statement is due out at 2:00pm ET with Fed chair Janet Yellen set to hold a news conference at 2:30pm ET. Ahead of this there were no government economic numbers out today.
Oil prices continued to plunge last down $1.24 at $42.22 a barrel in New York as U.S. crude stocks are forecast to have surged for the 10th straight week to a new record high fueling new concerns of a global oil supply glut. Gold futures edged down $1 to $1147 an ounce ahead of the Fed meeting outcome.
In corporate activity () shares were down premarket despite reporting a 53% increase in profit as the company's outlook was soft. Earnings during the holiday quarter were helped by lower fuel costs milder weather and recent restructuring efforts.
() reported fiscal third quarter results that topped views while also saying it plans to cut a total of 800 jobs in the next couple of months. It anticipates taking a $146 million charge for its plan which is expected to be completed by the end of fiscal 2015 which ends in May.
(NYSE:ORCL) shares were up premarket after earnings met expectations while revenue missed views last night. THe company also raised its quarterly dividend by 25% to 15 cents a share.
Adobe Systems () posted earnings and revenues that topped estimates but the software maker saw a worse-than-expected increase in subscribers to its Adobe Cloud service. Still this figure was up 28% from a year ago.
() is adding a new feature to its messaging app to allow friends to send and receive money with users requiring to link a or debit card issued by a US bank to their accounts.
American Express () meanwhile is teaming up with companies such as Macy's () () AT&T () and () to launch a loyalty program called Plenti. The news comes as the company prepares for the end of its 16-year relationship with (NASDAQ:COST).
Alibaba (NYSE:BABA) was in focus today with its lockup expiration with shares down premarket. The Chinese e-commerce giant went public six months ago in the biggest IPO ever.
(NASDAQ:KRFT) said it will recall about 242000 cases of its Macaroni & Cheese dinners because they could contain pieces of metal.
Business Development Company (NYSE:GSBD) will begin trading this morning on the New York Stock Exchange with the lending company's IPO priced at $20 a share.
European markets were mixed on Wednesday while Asian shares ended higher. Japan's Nikkei rose 0.55% after data showed exports rising at a faster-than-expected pace in February and Nintendo jumped on its entrance to the smartphone gaming industry.
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