U.S. stock futures on Wednesday inched higher,
with traders waiting for the afternoon's Federal Reserve decision and with results from General Motors and Boeing Co. providing additional comfort on third-quarter earnings season.
S&P 500 futures were steady at 1,384.80 and Nasdaq 100 futures rose 1.75 points at 1,728.00. Dow industrial futures rose 12 points.
On Tuesday, the Dow industrials finished 10 points higher to another record close, though the Nasdaq Composite ended 10.7 points lower. The S&P 500 ended up 0.4 points to reach its best level since January 2001.
The Fed is due to make its interest rate decision public at 2:15 p.m. Eastern. The Fed is all but certain to hold its key interest rate at 5.25%, with the accompanying statement to be eyed for signs on whether the policymakers have grown more hawkish.
Also on the economic docket will be existing-home sales for September, which are expected to have slumped to 6.23 million from 6.3 million.
The euro edged higher on the dollar after an unexpected rise in a key German business climate poll. The dollar also was softer against the yen.
Crude-oil futures edged 22 cents higher at $59.57 a barrel ahead of weekly energy inventory data. Product stockpiles are expected to fall while crude stocks probably rose.
The pan-European Dow Jones Stoxx 600 hit a new five-year high, while the Nikkei 225 index ended 0.5% lower in Tokyo.