US pre-open: Stocks set for mixed start, Avis and Bed, Bath and Beyond in focus

Stocks are set for a mixed open ahead of the conclusion of the Federal Reserve's two-day meeting and despite the release of a better-than-expected reading for private sector payroll growth.

Nevertheless, the day before all of Wall Street's major stock market indices notched up fresh record highs with the Dow Jones Industrial topping the 36,000 point mark for the first time.

That, said Jeffrey Halley, senior market analyst at Oanda, betrayed no pre-FOMC nerves as corporate earnings continued to impress.

On that note, Avis posted what Halley conceded was an "unexpectedly impressive" set of results overnight, triggering the "mother of all short squeezes" and saw the car rental outfit's shares more than double in value.

Fully 21% of the company's free float had been lent out to short-sellers.

Halley also pointed out Avis CEO's use of the magic 'word' EV, which in his view had "also attracted the Elon Musk meme-disciples from their Reddit burrows."

As at 1254 GMT, futures for the Dow Jones are off by 70.0 points to 35,868.0, alongside a 6.0 point dip for those on the S&P 500 to 4,617.50 while Nasda-100 futures were 12.75 points higher to 15,974.0.

The US dollar, WTI crude oil futures and Treasury yields were all lower alongside.

Bed, Bath & Beyond shares were also in focus, shooting 50% higher on the back of its results, which had also released after Tuesday's close.

On the economic side of things, consultancy ADP reported a 571,000 jump in private sector jobs during the month of October (consensus: 400,000), a possible good omen ahead of Friday's non-farm payrolls figures.

"The list of possible outcomes from that rogue’s gallery is already giving me a headache, but one thing we won’t be short of is volatility," said Halley.

And the latest MBA data revealed a 9.2% month-on-month drop in total mortgage applications in October, as the 30-year mortgage rate hit an eight-month high of 3.22%.

Still ahead was the Institute for Supply Management's services sector Purchasing Managers' Index for October at 1400 GMT, followed by the Fed's policy announcement at 1600 GMT.