Stocks Opened Slightly Higher on Gains in Tech

U.S. stocks opened modestly higher on Wednesday on gains in technology stocks, as investors awaited the Federal Reserve’s decision on an interest rate hike due later in the day. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately rose 54.92 points, or 0.22%, to 24,559.72. The S&P 500 was up 4.92 points, or 0.18%, to 2,669.03. The Nasdaq Composite added 26.32 points, or 0.38%, to 6,888.63.

Oil prices rose Wednesday, staying in positive territory after OPEC said production for the group has dropped to the lowest level in six months. West Texas Intermediate crude for delivery in January climbed 37 cents, or 0.7%, to $57.51 a barrel. February Brent rose 44 cents, or 0.7%, to $63.78 a barrel.

The Fed’s policy announcement on Wednesday will include a 25 basis-point interest rate hike, the reaffirmation of the previously announced plan for reducing the size of the balance sheet, an updated summary of Open Market Committee members’ economic projections and confirmation of their forward-looking guidance for rate increases next year.

Eli Lilly and Co on Wednesday forecast 2018 earnings largely above analysts’ estimates in part due to strong demand for recently launched products such as diabetes drug Trulicity and psoriasis drug Taltz. The company said it expected 2018 earnings per share of $4.24-$4.34 on a reported basis and $4.60-$4.70 on an adjusted basis.

Apple Inc will give Finisar Corp $390 million to increase production of chips that power high-profile iPhone X features including Face ID, Animojis and portrait-mode photos.