US stocks open lower ahead of Fed meeting

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks are falling in early trading ahead of an important Federal Reserve meeting.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell four points, or 0.2 percent, to 1,979 shortly after markets opened Tuesday.

The Dow Jones industrial average slipped 40 points, or 0.2 percent, to 16,990. The Nasdaq fell 13 points, or 0.3 percent, to 4,505.

Fed policy makers start a two-day meeting Tuesday and many investors expect the central bank to indicate that it is moving closer to raising its key interest rate as the economy continues to strengthen. The Fed has held the rate close to zero for more than five years, which has helped the stock market surge.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury note eased to at 2.58 percent from 2.59 percent late Monday.