BENGALURU, Sept 18 (Reuters) - Indian shares are set to

open little changed on Wednesday and are expected to tread water

through the session ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve's rate

decision and commentary.

The GIFT Nifty was at 25,470 points as of 08:08

a.m. IST, indicating the NSE Nifty 50 will open near its

close of 25,418.55 on Tuesday.

Other Asian markets were also muted.

The Indian benchmark was little changed in the previous

session too, holding fort near record-high levels, with traders

expecting the tentativeness to prevail ahead of the Fed policy

decision, due after the Indian markets close.

While the Fed is widely expected to lower rates, the size of

the cut -- 25 basis points or 50 bps -- is still uncertain. The

odds of a 50-bps cut have climbed to 65% from 34% last week.

While a bigger rate cut boosts the likelihood of foreign

investors shifting funds to emerging markets such as India in

search of higher returns, it has also prompted fears that the

Fed may have delayed the start of its easing cycle a little too

long, at the cost of economic growth.

The Fed's reason for its decision and its commentary on

future policy will influence the near-term trajectory of Indian

equities in terms of foreign inflows and the outlook for

U.S.-dependent sectors such as IT and pharma, three analysts

said.

Both foreign and domestic institutional investors were net

buyers of Indian stocks on Tuesday, purchasing a net of 4.83

billion rupees ($58 million) and 8.74 billion rupees, worth of

shares, respectively.

($1 = 83.7720 Indian rupees)