Gold and energy stocks pushed Toronto markets into the red Tuesday morning, while U.S. markets were flat ahead of the Federal Reserve’s decision on interest rates in the afternoon.

At midday, the Toronto S&P/TSX composite index was down 39.95 points or 0.42% to 9390.26, while the junior TSX Venture Exchange lost 11.95 points or 0.71% to 1665.61.

On Wall Street, the Dow Jones industrials was up 2.29 points or 0.02% to 10253.99. The Nasdaq composite was ahead 4.97 or 0.26% to 1933.62 and the S&P 500 index slipped 0.56 of a point or 0.05% to 1161.60.

The Canadian dollar was trading at US79.69¢, up 0.03 of a cent. On Monday, the loonie rose 0.2 of a cent.

On commodities markets, gold futures traded lower, with the benchmark June contract down $1.20 at $429.30 an ounce. Crude-oil futures continued to hold above US$50 a barrel after rallying in the prior session from a two-month low. Crude for June delivery was down 62¢ at US$50.30 a barrel in New York trading.

In Toronto, the TSX energy sub-group was down 0.78%, while the heavy-weight financials group was off 0.67%.

In New York, investors stood on the sidelines waiting for the rate announcement from the Fed’s Federal Open Market Committee expected at 2:15p.m. Fed policy makers are widely expected to lift short-term rates by a quarter-percentage point to 3%, the eighth time in a row the central bank has done so.

But the key question remains how recent softness in economic data will affect the future pace and size of rate hikes. Traders will look for clues on the Fed’s thoughts on the economy in the statement that inevitably accompanies its interest rate decision.

Overseas, Japanese financial markets were closed Tuesday for Constitution Day, a national holiday. Trading will resume on Friday after the annual “golden week” holidays. In Europe, Britain’s FTSE 100 was up 1.04%, Germany’s DAX index surged 0.15%, and France’s CAC-40 rose 0.19%.