NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks are slightly higher in late morning trading Wednesday as investors wait to hear from the Federal Reserve and work through company news, including a possible deal between two giant beer makers.
KEEPING SCORE: The Dow Jones industrial average rose 79 points, or 0.5 percent, to 16,678 as of 11:25 a.m. Eastern. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 10 points, or 0.5 percent, to 1,987 and the Nasdaq composite added 10 points, or 0.2 percent, to 4,870.
FED FOCUS: Investors are closely watching the Federal Reserve and the start of its two-day meeting Wednesday, which could end with the central bank raising its benchmark interest rate for the first time in nearly a decade. Investors remain mixed on the chance of an increase.
Some economists say it’s time to start gradually raising interest rates given that the U.S. job market has recovered significantly. Others argue rates should remain low given the recent global turmoil in financial markets triggered by concerns over China.
MERGER BREWING: SABMiller, a major beer maker whose brands include Miller and Foster’s, jumped 21 percent in London after the company said it received a takeover offer from Anheuser-Busch InBev. A combination of the two would create a massive conglomerate worth roughly $275 billion. Any potential deal would be sure to receive heavy scrutiny from regulators in the U.S. and overseas.
U.S.-traded shares of Anheuser-Busch rose $5.77, or 5 percent, to $113.77. Other beer makers also rose. Molson Coors jumped $9.48, or 13 percent, to $82.09.
JOB CUTS: Hewlett-Packard rose $1.29, or 5 percent, to $28.39 after the company announced it would cut 30,000 jobs, or roughly 10 percent of its workforce, and would split into two separate companies.
MISSED DELIVERY: FedEx sank $5.62, or 4 percent, to $148.43 after the company’s quarterly results missed analysts’ expectations and issued a warning to its full-year results late Tuesday.
ENERGY: U.S. benchmark crude jumped $2.40, or 5.4 percent, to $46.99 on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude, a benchmark for many international types of oil imported into the U.S., gained $2.33 to $50.90 a barrel.
BONDS, CURRENCIES: U.S. government bond prices rose slightly. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.28 percent. The dollar was little changed at 120.58 yen and the euro edged up to $1.13.
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