Sept. 17--World stock markets held mostly steady in anticipation of the Federal Reserve's endlessly discussed decision later Thursday concerning whether to raise interest rates for the first time in nine years.
The blue-chip Dow Jones industrial average dipped 31.60, less than 0.2%, to 16,708.35 in early trading, while the broader Standard Poor's 500 was down less than 0.2%, or 3.68, to 1,991.63. European markets were mostly flat, and the MSCI World Index of 1,642 global stocks was up about 1%.
For more than a year, markets have jumped and dived on speculation over the course of the Federal Reserve Open Market Committee, which concludes two days of meetings with a rate announcement at 11 a.m. Pacific time.
The Fed has had to navigate an especially murky economic and financial landscape, as reasonably strong U.S. economic growth and unemployment figures have been offset by sluggish growth in Europe and deepening uncertainty over the Chinese economy as its slows from double-digit growth.
Global stocks were roiled last month when China announced it was devaluing its currency, and Chinese stock markets on Thursday continued a volatile ride that began in June, with the Shanghai Composite Index falling more than 2% and the China Shenzhen index falling about 1.5%.
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After a rough August, U.S. stocks have risen more than 1% this week as investors anticipate that the Fed's rate-setting panel would again put off a rate hike.
Russ Koesterich, chief investment strategist for BlackRock Inc., wrote this week that while the price-to-earnings ratio for U.S. stocks is down 7% from its peak in February, stock prices remain elevated by historical standards.
A rate hike announcement Thursday almost certainly would pull down stocks. What the Fed will actually do, he said, remains a "coin flip."
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