US stocks mixed as Fed meeting begins

By Ovunc Kutlu

ISTANBUL (AA) - US stocks opened mixed Tuesday as the Federal Reserve's key monetary meeting began.

The Dow Jones industrial average was down 40 points, or 0.12%, to 33,676 at 10:12 a.m. EDT (1512GMT).

The S&P 500, on the other hand, added 9 points, or 0.24% to 4,026.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq increased 47 points, or 0.41%, to 11,441 at the time.

The VIX volatility index, also known as the fear index, fell 0.6% to 19.82, while the 10-year US Treasury yield lost 0.45% to 3.535%.

The dollar index fell 0.02% to 102.30, while the euro added 0.01% to $1.0845 against the greenback.

Precious metals were in the red, with gold trimming 0.02% to $1,922 per ounce and silver falling 0.1% to $23.58.

Crude oil prices were up 0.7% with global benchmark Brent crude at $85.05 per barrel and US benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude at $78.47.

The Fed is expected to hike interest rates 25 basis points after its two-day meeting on Wednesday.

That will be after it made rate hikes of 425 points on seven occasions last year to lower record inflation.