By Anora Mahmudova, MarketWatch

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stocks were marginally lower on Wednesday with all attention turned to the Federal Reserve's two-day policy meeting and a press briefing by the Fed chairwoman Janet Yellen.

The main benchmarks paused after three days of modest gains.

The S&P 500 (SPX) was 2 points, or 0.1%, higher at 1,943.62. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) slipped 10 points to 16,803. The Nasdaq Composite (RIXF) was off 2 points at 4,335.42.

Follow MarketWatch's live blog of today's stock-market action.

The Federal Open Markets Committee began its second day of meeting and is due to release a statement at 2 p.m. Eastern, followed by a 2:30 p.m. Eastern press conference by Chairwoman Janet Yellen.

The FOMC is expected to further reduce its bond-buying program by $10 billion to $35 billion a month, and leave the Fed funds policy target of 0% to 0.25% unchanged. Read: Fed could jolt markets with rate-hike views

Investors will watch for any comments from Yellen that point to when the Fed will begin to raise interest rates as the central bank moves closer to reaching economic-data milestones, including stabilization of inflation at 2%. Figures on Tuesday showed inflation hitting an unadjusted 2.1% rate in May. The market will also look for a possible reduction in the Fed's growth projection for this year.

* In corporate news, at a company event in Seattle, Amazon.com Inc.'s Chief Executive Jeff Bezos is expected to unveil its first smartphone, and speculation is that the device will feature 3-D capabilities. Amazon shares rose 1.8%.

* BlackBerry Ltd. shares rose 3.4% after the Wall Street Journal reported that the company is likely to announce a partnership with Amazon.com Inc. on Wednesday. that would give the smartphone maker access to Amazon's Appstore.

* Shares of FedEx Corp. rose 3.8% after the parcel delivery company's quarterly earnings and sales came in higher than anticipated by analysts.

* Adobe Systems Inc. rallied 9.6% after the company late Tuesday reported better-than-expected adjusted earnings.

* But La-Z-Boy Inc. shares slid 9% on Wednesday as the furniture maker's fourth quarter same-store sales fell 0.9%, compared with a 11.2% rise in the fourth quarter of last year.

* ConAgra Foods Inc. shares declined 5.8% after the packaged food company said Wednesday its fiscal fourth-quarter earnings will miss expectations, as volume in its consumer foods segment declined 7% and its private brands unit posted weak profits.

* In overseas markets, Japanese stocks rose, outperforming other benchmarks throughout the region. European stocks clung to thin gains ahead of the Fed decision. Minutes from the Bank of England's meeting earlier this month, released Wednesday, signaled policy makers are moving closer to raising U.K. rates before year's end.

* Among commodities, gold for August delivery ticked down $1 to $1,270.6 an ounce. Crude oil futures added 39 cents to $106.75.

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