Stocks futures subdued ahead of Fed statement

[June 19, 2019]  By Shreyashi Sanyal

(Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures were flat on Wednesday as the mood turned cautious ahead of the Federal Reserve's policy statement, which investors hope could open the door to future interest rate cuts.

The Fed is expected to leave rates unchanged at the end of its two-day policy meeting on Wednesday, but expectations are high that the central bank could reduce borrowing costs later this year.

Bets of a rate cut have helped markets climb this month, with the S&P 500 index gaining 6% so far and moving 1% shy of its all-time high hit in early May.

The Fed's statement and new economic projections are to be released at 2 p.m. ET (1800 GMT), giving investors an idea on how a prolonged U.S.-China trade conflict, President Donald Trump's calls for a rate cut and softer-than-expected economic data have impacted monetary policy.

Global financial markets have been fired up by European Central Bank President Mario Draghi's Tuesday volte-face on policy easing and as investors bet on a worldwide wave of central bank stimulus.

At 7:16 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis were up 7 points, or 0.03%. S&P 500 e-minis were down 1.25 points, or 0.04% and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were down 0.75 points, or 0.01%.

Traders work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, U.S., June 4, 2019. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo

Sentiment was also buoyed by hopes of progress on U.S.-China trade dispute, with Beijing hinting that positive outcomes were possible in negotiations with Washington, after the world's two largest economies agreed to revive their troubled talks at a G20 meeting this month.

Trade-sensitive industrial giants Boeing Co and Caterpillar Inc rose in premarket trading, while semiconductor companies, which source and supply products to China, also traded higher.

Among other stocks, Adobe Inc jumped 4.4% after the Photoshop software provider beat analysts' estimates for quarterly profit and revenue, driven by growth in its digital media business that houses its flagship product Creative Cloud.

TripAdvisor Inc gained 2% after SunTrust Robinson upgraded the company's stock to "buy."

(Reporting by Shreyashi Sanyal in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila)

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