Stock Futures Rise Ahead of Fed Minutes

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U.S. stock-index futures pushed higher on Wednesday as traders awaited minutes from the Federal Reserve's last policy-setting meeting.

Today's Markets

As of 8:00 a.m. ET, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures rose 37 points, or 0.22%, to 16373, S&P 500 futures advanced 4 points, or 0.21%, to 1872 and Nasdaq 100 futures advanced 7.8 points, or 0.22%, to 3604.

Wall Street took significant losses on low volume in the last session, with shares of retailers leading the way lower. The day was off to a more quiet start on Wednesday.

There are no major economic releases due out in the morning. However, the Fed is set to reveal minutes from its last policy-setting meeting at 2 p.m. ET.

The conversation has shifted from a discussion over how quickly the central bank will taper its bond-buying program to discussion over when and how it will begin to normalize interest rates. Short-term rates have been at historic lows since the financial crisis, but as the economy improves, the Fed will have to begin hiking rates to keep growth and inflation from over-heating. Economists expect "lift-off" to occur at some point next year.

Fed chief Janet Yellen will also deliver a commencement address for New York University at an event in the Bronx, NY.

Elsewhere, U.S. crude oil futures fell 17 cents, or 0.17%, to $102.44 a barrel. Wholesale New York Harbor gasoline rose 0.28% to $2.972 a gallon. Gold dipped $4.50, or 0.35%, to $1,290 a troy ounce.