Markets were subdued again Tuesday as investors awaited the Federal Reserve's latest meeting and the release of quarterly earnings reports from major tech companies later this week.

 

The Federal Open Market Committee wraps up its two-day meeting Wednesday, and investors expect another 75 basis point interest rate hike, while tech giants Apple, Amazon, Microsoft and Alphabet will release their quarterly earnings reports this week.

 

U.S. stock futures were down slightly in morning trading, with Dow Jones Industrial Average futures down 0.38 percent and Nasdaq futures down 0.32 percent. S&P 500 futures traded 0.30 percent lower after a Walmart earnings warning sent stocks down 9.3 percent in over-the-counter trading.

 

Analysts said the low futures trading volume means investors should expect another quiet day for stocks.

 

"Yesterday was a dull day, and today probably will be too," said Michael Brown, head of market analysis at Caxton FX. "Take the opportunity to rest up before the fireworks begin on Wednesday."

 

Alphabet and Microsoft will be the first major tech giants to report their earnings, with second-quarter reports to be released after Tuesday's closing bell.

 

"We have Microsoft and Alphabet today after the bell, Meta tomorrow, and Apple and Amazon on Thursday," said Deutsche Bank managing director Jim Reed. "So there will be more than $7.5 trillion at stake in the next couple of days."

 

Global stock indexes were also mixed, with the MSCI World Index up 0.1 percent, but several key stock markets saw slight declines.

 

Europe's flagship Stoxx 600 index was up 0.04%, with the Paris CAC 40 and Frankfurt DAX 40 falling 0.15% and 0.55%, respectively. London's FTSE 100 index traded more strongly, rising 0.63%.

 

In Asia, the Shanghai Composite was up 0.83% and Hong Kong's Hang Seng was up 1.93%, but Tokyo's Nikkei 225 was down 0.24% at the close of trading.

 

Here's how the other major asset classes are behaving:

• Bond yields fell, with the 10-year U.S. Treasury note down 3.1 basis points to 2.79% and the 2-year U.S. Treasury note down 1.7 basis points to 3.02%.
• Oil prices rose after Russia cut gas supplies through the Nord Stream pipeline to Europe to about 20 percent of its full capacity. Brent crude rose 1.75% to just under $102 a barrel and WTI crude rose 1.72% to more than $98 a barrel.
• Cryptocurrencies fell after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission opened an investigation into the Coinbase exchange: bitcoin fell 4.3% to just over $21,000 and ethereum fell 7.6% to about $1,400.