Wall Street opens little changed as S&P 500 holds near 7729.57 before Fed decision

The S&P 500 was little changed in early trading on Wall Street on Wednesday, standing at 7729.57 at 10:00 New York time. The index closed the previous session at 7722.6.

What happened

The S&P 500 gained 6.97 points, or 0.09%, from the previous close of 7722.6. The move is small enough to describe the index as flat. The Nasdaq 100 stood at 29694.28 at the same time, up 42.84 points, or 0.14%, from 29651.44.

The CBOE Volatility Index, a gauge of expected stock market swings, was at 17.48 on Wednesday. At the previous close it stood at 17.52, a change of -0.04, or -0.23%.

Several large companies reported results before the opening bell. Amphenol reported earnings per share of 0.8 USD, against an estimate of 0.73 USD. Its revenue was 10.23 billion USD, against an estimate of 9.49 billion USD.

Automatic Data Processing reported earnings per share of 2.82 USD, against an estimate of 2.77 USD. Revenue was 5.49 billion USD, against an estimate of 5.48 billion USD.

American Electric Power posted earnings per share of 2.23 USD, against an estimate of 2.05 USD. Its revenue was 6.83 billion USD, against an estimate of 6.55 billion USD.

Boston Scientific reported earnings per share of 0.73 USD, against an estimate of 0.72 USD, on revenue of 5.14 billion USD, against an estimate of 5.06 billion USD. Aon reported earnings per share of 3.36 USD, against an estimate of 3.3 USD, and revenue of 4.1 billion USD, against an estimate of 4.08 billion USD.

Why it matters

The main event of the day is the Federal Reserve interest rate decision. The estimate for the rate is 4%, the same as the previous reading of 4%. Index moves in the morning were small, which leaves the central bank decision as the main scheduled event for the session.

Macroeconomic data also came out before the open. The US goods trade balance for September was -134.9 billion USD, against an estimate of -130 billion USD. The previous reading was -132.07 billion USD. The balance measures the difference between the value of goods the country exports and imports, so a larger negative figure means imports exceeded exports by a wider margin.

The volatility index at 17.48 shows where the options market stands on expected swings in the S&P 500 at this point in the session. It is little changed from the previous close of 17.52. The Nasdaq 100 rose a little more than the S&P 500 in percentage terms, at 0.14% against 0.09%.

The earnings reports cover a range of industries. Amphenol makes electronic connectors, Automatic Data Processing provides payroll and human resources services, and American Electric Power is a utility. Boston Scientific makes medical devices, and Aon is an insurance broker and professional services firm. Each of the five reported before the market opened on Wednesday.

What to watch next

The Fed rate decision is scheduled for 18:00 UTC, which is 14:00 in New York. The FOMC statement is due at the same time. The statement is the written explanation of the committee's decision, and it is the first official description of the reasoning behind the rate outcome.

A press conference follows at 18:30 UTC. Market participants will follow what the central bank says there about its decision and how it describes the economy. Remarks at the press conference often add detail to the written statement.

The index levels in this report are from 10:00 New York time, and the VIX figure is an intraday level. They can change before the close at 16:00 New York time, particularly around the Fed announcements in the afternoon.