A Peek Into The Markets: U.S. Stock Futures Down; All Eyes On Fed Decision

Pre-open movers

U.S. stock futures traded lower in early pre-market trade. The ADP national employment report for April will be released at 8:15 a.m. ET. US Services Purchasing Managers' Index for April is schedule for release at 9:45 a.m. ET, while the ISM non-manufacturing index for April will be released at 10:00 a.m. ET. The Federal Open Market Committee will announce its policy decision at 2:00 p.m. ET..

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 19 points to 20,848.00, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 index futures slipped 3.50 points to 2,382.50. Futures for the Nasdaq 100 index dropped 16 points to 5,623.50.

Oil prices traded higher as Brent crude futures rose 0.87 percent to trade at $50.90 per barrel, while US WTI crude futures gained 0.78 percent to trade at $48.03 a barrel. The Energy Information Administration’s weekly report on petroleum inventories is schedule for release at 10:30 a.m. ET.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were lower today, with the Spanish Ibex Index falling 0.02 percent, STOXX Europe 600 Index dropping 0.16 percent and German DAX 30 index declining 0.13 percent. The UK's FTSE index was trading lower by 0.31 percent, while French CAC 40 Index slipped 0.24 percent.

In Asian markets, Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average rose 0.70 percent, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose 0.33 percent, China’s Shanghai Composite Index declined 0.27 percent and India’s BSE Sensex slipped 0.09 percent.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at BMO Capital downgraded Bristol-Myers Squibb Co (NYSE: BMY) from Market Perform to Underperform.

Bristol-Myers shares fell 0.64 percent to close at $55.95 on Tuesday.

Breaking news

• Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) posted upbeat earnings for its second quarter and announced a $50 billion buyback plan. iPhone unit sales dropped 1 percent year-over-year in the quarter, while iPad unit sales declined 13percent year-over-year.
• WellCare Health Plans, Inc. (NYSE: WCG) reported better-than-expected earnings for its first quarter.
• Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE: YUM) posted upbeat results for its first quarter on Wednesday.
• Time Warner Inc (NYSE: TWX) reported stronger-than-expected earnings for its first quarter on Wednesday.