Sept 16 (Reuters) - Euro zone bond yields were little

changed on Tuesday, tracking muted moves in their U.S.

counterparts, as investors prepared for the Federal Reserve to

resume its easing cycle this week following a nine-month hiatus.

Germany's 10-year bond yield, the benchmark for

euro zone government bonds, was nearly flat at 2.701% while

yields at the shorter end of the curve were also stable.

French and Italian bonds traded roughly in line with their

German peers. France's 30-year bond yield eased

slightly to 4.293%, largely shrugging off Fitch's downgrade of

the country's sovereign credit rating late last week.

With investors honing in on the outcome of the Fed meeting,

the interest rate expectations-sensitive 2-year Treasury yield

was steady at 3.54%.

Money markets are currently fully pricing in a 25-bps Fed

rate cut this week and around 140 bps by the end of 2026, from

the current range of 4.25-4.50%.

Alongside the rate decision on Wednesday, investors will

also focus on policymakers' updated summary of economic

projections and commentary from Fed Chair Jerome Powell.

The unprecedented pressure confronting the U.S. central

bank's independence will also be in focus during Powell's press

conference.

A U.S. appeals court said on Monday President Donald Trump

cannot fire Fed Governor Lisa Cook, while the Senate narrowly

confirmed Trump's top economic adviser Stephen Miran to the

Fed's Board of Governors the same day.

(Reporting by Jaspreet Kalra; Editing by Amanda Cooper and

Muralikumar Anantharaman)