Stocks inch down ahead of Fed interest rate decision 

Wall Street ticked modestly lower today ahead of what traders hope will be the Federal Reserve’s final increase in this interest rate cycle, according to the Associated Press.

Futures for the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average were each about 0.1% lower before the bell.

Later today, investors expect the Fed to raise its key lending rate by 0.25 percentage points to a 22-year high. They hope the U.S. central bank can manage a “soft landing,” extinguishing inflation while avoiding a recession.

It’s also a busy stretch for corporate news, with about 30% of the companies in the S&P 500 due to report earnings this week.

Boeing shares rose more than 3% early today after the jet maker reported a narrower loss than expected as revenue rose. Snap tumbled 18% after the social media app lowered its forecast for the current quarter.

Facebook parent company Meta reports its quarterly earnings after the bell Wednesday.

In energy markets, benchmark U.S. crude lost 96 cents to $78.67 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose 89 cents the previous session to $79.63. Brent crude, the price basis for international oil trading, sank by a dollar to $82.25 per barrel in London.

The dollar declined to 140.44 yen from Tuesday’s 141.04 yen. The euro gained to $1.1062 from $1.1045.

On Tuesday, stocks closed higher on Wall Street after more companies reported wider profits for the spring than expected.

General Electric helped lead the market after it reported stronger profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. That helped offset losses for airline stocks.