Investing.com - Here are the top five things you need to know today in financial markets:
1. Markets brace for Fed rate hike
The Federal Reserve is expected to raise rates by 25 basis points at the conclusion of its policy meeting at 2:00PM ET on Wednesday. The central bank will also release its latest forecasts for economic growth and interest rates.
Fed Chair Janet Yellen is to hold what will be a closely-watched press conference 30 minutes after the release of the Fed's statement.
With a rate hike already mostly priced in, market players are now focusing on how quickly the Fed will tighten monetary policy in 2016. Many in the market anticipate the pace of increases to be gradual amid concerns over tepid growth overseas and divergent monetary policies between the U.S. and other nations.
2. U.S. housing data for November due ahead of the bell
Market players looked ahead to reports on the U.S housing sector due at 8:30AM ET on Wednesday.
The Commerce Department is expected to report that building permits fell 1.0% to 1.150 million in November, while housing starts are forecast to rise 6.6% to 1.135 million.
At 9:15AM, the U.S. will publish data on November industrial production. That should be followed by a December reading for a manufacturing index at 9:45AM.
3. Global shares in the green ahead of Fed outcome
Global stock markets were in positive territory on Wednesday, as market players looked ahead to the outcome of the all-important Federal Reserve meeting later in the session.
Asian equities were mostly higher, with Japan's Nikkei surging 2.6%, tracking a strong session of gains on Wall Street overnight.
The upbeat sentiment spilled over to Europe, where Germany's DAX tacked on 0.7%. Meanwhile, U.S. stock futures were up between 0.5% and 0.6%, suggesting a stronger open on Wall Street later in the day.
U.S. stocks soared on Tuesday as an energy-fueled rally provided a boost to all three major indices.
4. WTI oil falls below $37 ahead of weekly supply report
The U.S. Energy Information Administration will release its weekly report on oil supplies at 10:30AM ET Wednesday. The data was expected to show that crude inventories fell by 1.4 million barrels last week.
After markets closed Tuesday, the American Petroleum Institute, an industry group, surprised market participants and said that U.S. oil inventories rose by 2.3 million barrels in the week ended December 11, compared to expectations for a decline of 2.5 million barrels.
U.S. crude was last down 38 cents, or 1.02%, to trade at $36.98 a barrel as of 5:54AM ET, while London-traded Brent lost 96 cents, or 2.49%, to trade at $37.77.
5. Euro zone inflation revised up to 0.2%
Eurostat said consumer price inflation rose by a seasonally adjusted 0.2% last month, up from a preliminary estimate of 0.1%. Euro zone inflation rose by 0.1% in October.
Despite the modest uptick, the rate has now been below 1% for 26 straight months, well under the European Central Bank's target of near but just under 2%.