Afternoon Markets: Dow advances ahead of Fed meeting

The Dow Jones made slow progress in early trading on Wednesday as investors awaited an interest rate...

The Dow Jones made slow progress in early trading on Wednesday as investors awaited an interest rate announcement and the latest economic outlook from the Federal Reserve. The benchmark index rose 57 points (0.69%) to sit at 8380.35 as of 10am EDT. Stocks making the most headway included Aluminum giant Alcoa, up 6.2% to $10.62 due to higher aluminium and copper prices, and construction equipment supplier Caterpillar, which rose 3.03% to $34. Boeing continued to slip after suffering heavy losses on Tuesday due to a delay to the maiden flight of its new 787 'Dreamliner'. It fell 1.64% t...