07:21 AM EDT, 09/17/2025 (MT Newswires) -- The main US stock measures were mostly pointing lower in Wednesday's premarket activity as traders await the Federal Reserve's decision on interest rates later in the day.

The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq edged down 0.1% each before the opening bell, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average was slightly in the green. The indexes closed the previous trading session down, with the Nasdaq snapping a six-day winning streak.

The Fed is due to announce its latest monetary policy decision at 2 pm ET, with Chair Jerome Powell scheduled to hold a press conference at 2:30 pm. Markets are widely expecting the Federal Open Market Committee to lower its benchmark lending rate by 25 basis points, according to the CME FedWatch tool.

Many analysts expect the move to be the start of an easing cycle amid worries about a softening US labor market. Powell is expected to "offer balance" after the decision, Macquarie said in a Tuesday note.

"He'll highlight again the downside risk to employment growth, but refrain from signaling a (long) string of cuts after September," according to Macquarie. "That could rally the USD, hurt gold, and cause a tremor tomorrow in the tectonic drift higher in tech stocks."

Treasury yields were down before the open, with the two-year rate retreating 0.3 basis points to 3.51% and the 10-year rate off 1.1 basis points to 4.02%.

Wednesday's economic calendar also has the weekly mortgage applications bulletin, followed by the housing starts and permits data for August and the weekly EIA domestic petroleum inventories report.

On Tuesday, official data showed that retail sales growth accelerated last month amid broad-based gains, including in spending on motor vehicles and at fuel stations. Industrial production logged a surprise increase in August as manufacturing output rebounded, according to a separate report.

Homebuilder confidence held steady this month, though future sales projections reached a six-month high amid lower mortgage rates and prospects of monetary policy easing by the Fed, the National Association of Home Builders and Wells Fargo said Tuesday.

Shares of Nvidia ( NVDA ) declined 1.7% pre-bell following a Financial Times report that said major Chinese technology companies were recently informed by the country's internet regulator to terminate their testing and orders of the tech bellwether's artificial intelligence chips.

GSK's (GSK) stock inclined 0.9% after the UK drugmaker unveiled plans to spend $30 billion in the US over the next five years to expand research and development and strengthen its supply chain infrastructure.

General Mills ( GIS ) and Manchester United ( MANU ) are expected to report their latest financial results before the bell, while Bullish (BLSH) and Cracker Barrel Old Country Store ( CBRL ) post earnings after the markets close.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil decreased 1% to $63.89 a barrel in premarket action. Gold fell 0.6% to $3,702 per troy ounce, while bitcoin slipped 0.3% to $116,345.