U.S. stocks trade lower amid weaker GDP, Fed meeting

U.S. stocks traded lower around midday Wednesday, as investors weighed a weaker-than-expected GDP data and awaited the conclusion of the two-day Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting.

At noon, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 83.65 points, or 0.46 percent, to 18,026.49. The S&P 500 shed 10.09 points, or 0. 48 percent, to 2,104.67. The Nasdaq Composite Index fell 30.97 points, or 0.61 percent, to 5,024.46.

U.S. real gross domestic product (GDP) increased at an annual rate of 0.2 percent in the first quarter this year, according to an advanced estimate released by the U.S. Commerce Department on Wednesday.

The first quarter GDP showed a sharp slowdown from the fourth quarter's 2.2 percent pace and below expectations of one percent growth.

Investors also assessed the Fed statement may offer clues to whether a hike in June is still a realistic possibility.

"Q1 was unquestionably weak to judge from this report, but many at the Fed are betting on a Q2 bounce. If they are right and the strength materializes right away, the FOMC could still raise rates in June," said Chris Low, chief economist at FTN Financial, in a note.

Most analysts expected that the central bank will not raise interest rates until September at the earliest, because of a wave of disappointing domestic data.

In corporate news, Time Warner posted its first quarter revenue of 7.1 billion U.S. dollars, above forecasts, and quarterly adjusted earnings per share of 1.19 dollars, above estimates as well.

Traders also focused on Twitter after its shares plunged 18.18 percent Tuesday following the release of its quarterly earnings report. Shares continued to decline 5.25 percent around midday. Enditem