U.S. stock futures are lower in pre-market trading for Wednesday, July 26.The Dow Futures are trading at 21,603.00 for up with +0.20% percent or +43.00 point. The S&P 500 Futures are trading at 2,476.75 for up with +0.11% percent or +2.75 point.The Nasdaq Futures are trading at 5,936.75 for up with +0.05% percent or +3.00 point.

In overnight trading in the Eastern Hemisphere, Japan’s Nikkei 225 are trading at 20,050.16 for up with  +0.48% percent or +94.96 point. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng are trading at 26,877.14 for up with  +0.09% percent or  +25.09 point. China’s Shanghai Composite are trading at 3,232.25 with a loss of –0.35% percent or –11.44 point. India’s S&P BSE Sensex are trading at 32,317.27 for up with  +0.28% percent or  +89.00 point at 12:15 PM . In Europe, the FTSE 100 are trading at 7,461.59 for up with +0.36% percent or +26.77 point. Germany’s DAX are trading at 12,290.42 for up with +0.21% percent or +26.11 point. France’s CAC 40 are trading at 5,185.40 for up with +0.47% percent or +24.32 point. The Stoxx Europe 600 are trading at 382.28 for up with +0.36% percent or +1.33 point.

Wednesday’s Factors and Events

U.S. stock  futures were slightly higher on Wednesday as investors awaited the outcome of a two-day Federal Reserve meeting and a fresh set of earnings.

* Although the central bank is not likely to raise interest rates, it is expected to discuss its monetary policy stance and the timing of a long-awaited balance sheet reduction. The Fed’s statement is due at 2 p.m. ET (1800 GMT).

* The market continues to focus on second-quarter earnings, which is expected to have climbed 9.1 percent in the second quarter, up from an 8 percent rise estimated at the start of the month, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

* The S&P and the Nasdaq closed at record highs on Tuesday, while the Dow hovered around record levels, helped by well-received reports from big names, including McDonald’s (N:MCD) and Caterpillar (N:CAT).

Tuesday’s Activity

U.S. market  were higher on Tuesday. For the day the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 21,613.43 for up with  +0.47% percent or  +100.26 point. The S&P 500 closed at 2,477.13 for up with +0.29% percent or +7.22 point.The Nasdaq Composite closed at 6,412.17 for up with +0.02% percent or +1.37 point.

Other leading market index closes included the small-cap Russell 2000 Index closed at 1,450.39 for up with +0.86% percent or +12.33 point; the S&P 600 Small-Cap Index closed at 876.06 for up with +0.89% percent or +7.73 point; the S&P 400 Mid-Cap Index closed at 1,791.93 for up with +0.85% percent or +15.13 point; the S&P 100 Index closed at 1,090.07 for up with  +0.30% percent or  +3.25 point; the Russell 3000 Index closed at 1,469.21 for up with  of  +0.36% percent or +5.22 point; the Russell 1000 Index closed at 1,373.55 for up with  +0.32% percent or +4.32 point; and the Dow Jones U.S. Select Dividend Index closed at 21,613.43 for up with  +0.47% percent or +100.26 point.