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U.S. stocks turn higher ahead of Fed minutes

Xinhua, May 19, 2016 Adjust font size:

U.S. stocks pared early losses to trade higher around midday Wednesday, as investors eagerly awaited the Federal Reserve's minutes from its April meeting scheduled for release in the afternoon.

At noon, the Dow Jones Industrial Average inched up 8.52 points, or 0.05 percent, to 17,538.50. The S&P 500 rose 3.99 points, or 0.19 percent, to 2,051.20. The Nasdaq Composite Index added 29.34 points, or 0.62 percent, to 4,745.07.

A batch of economic data, including the consumer price index, housing starts and industrial production, came out better than expected Tuesday, which spurred speculations that the Fed may be more hawkish on a second rate hike.

Meanwhile, San Francisco Fed President John Williams and Atlanta Fed President Dennis Lockhart said Tuesday that the U.S. central bank could still raise interest rates two or three times this year, according to Reuters.

Wall Street keeps a close eye on the highly-anticipated minutes, which are due at 2 p.m. Eastern Time, for more clues on when the Fed's next interest-rate hike might hit.

Oil prices were also in focus, which traded about 1 percent higher around midday Wednesday, as the U.S. Energy Information Administration reported a surprise build in crude stockpiles and a large fall in other fuel inventories.

On Tuesday, U.S. stocks suffered big losses as Wall Street digested a batch of economic reports that supported the case for a rate hike later this year. Endit