5 Things to Know Before the Stock Market Opens

Stock futures are little changed as investors get ready for today’s interest rate decision from the Federal Reserve, which is expected to lower rates for the first time this year; China has reportedly ordered firms to stop buying the latest Nvidia (NVDA) chip designed for that market; Meta Platforms (META) is expected to highlight its AI glasses at its developer event; and StubHub shares are set to begin trading on the New York Stock Exchange. Here’s what investors need to know today.

Stock futures are little changed ahead of today’s highly anticipated Federal Reserve decision on interest rates. Futures tied to the S&P 500 and tech-heavy Nasdaq, which hit fresh all-time highs yesterday morning before finishing the day slightly lower, were down less than 0.1% this morning. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note, which affects borrowing costs on all sorts of loans, ticked lower to 4.01%, near its lowest level since April. Gold futures were down slightly at around $3,700 an ounce, after hitting a record high on Tuesday, while bitcoin edged lower to $116,300.

The  Federal Reserve is widely expected to lower interest rates today, with the announcement coming at 2 p.m. ET today. While most investors believe the Fed will cut its benchmark rate by a quarter percentage point, some are betting that a half-point cut is possible amid signs of weakness in the labor market. The Fed will also release its quarterly projections on the direction of the economy and interest rates. At 2:30 p.m. ET, Fed Chair Jerome Powell will hold a press conference to discuss the decision and speak on general economic conditions. Investors will be looking for signals that the Fed believes economic conditions warrant more rate cuts in the coming months.

China’s internet regulator has ordered companies to stop buying Nvidia (NVDA) chips in order to reduce reliance on U.S. technology, according to a report in The Financial Times. The Cyberspace Administration of China told companies including TikTok-parent ByteDance and Alibaba to terminate their testing and orders of the RTX Pro 6000D, Nvidia’s latest chip designed for the Chinese market, the report said. The new ban is stronger than prior restrictions from regulators that focused on the H20, an earlier version of Nvidia’s China-tailored AI chip. The ban comes after China recently accused Nvidia of antitrust violations. Nvidia shares were down about 1% in recent premarket trading.