Traders are looking ahead to the Federal Reserve Board’s decision on U.S. interest rates due this afternoon.

Most economists agree the Federal Open Market Committee, or FOMC, will vote in favour of a quarter-point increase in the federal funds rate. The rate is now at a 46-year low of 1%.

The Bank of Canada’s next announcement on interest rates is scheduled for July 20.

Canadian stock markets will be closed for Canada Day celebrations on Thursday. U.S. markets are closed next Monday for Independence Day.

In this morning’s economic news, Statistics Canada said that labour disputes and a slowdown in manufacturing dragged Canada’s gross domestic product down to a 0.1% gain in April after strong 0.8% growth in March.

“The health care sector reported a 1% decline in activity as public servant strikes in Newfoundland and Labrador and British Columbia hampered output,” StatsCan said.

Overnight, Asian stock markets closed mixed. Japan’s Nikkei slipped 1.94 points to 11,858.87.

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index climbed 169.45 points, or 1.4%, to 12,285.75.

On Tuesday, the S&P/TSX composite index added 29.65 points to close at 8,498.52. The junior S&P/TSX Venture composite index slipped 19.05 points, or 1.26%, to 1,553.92.

On Wall Street, the Dow Jones industrial average gained 56.34 points to close at 10,413.43. The S&P 500 gained 2.85 points to 1,136.20. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index added 15.11 points to close at 2,034.93.

U.S. stocks got a boost from a report showing that consumer confidence hit a two-year high in June. However, significant gains were tempered by uncertainty over whether the the U.S. Federal Reserve will raise interest rates.

Later this week, traders will get a look at the U.S. Institute for Supply Management report on manufacturing on Thursday and U.S. payrolls on Friday.