North American markets are expected to open higher Thursday, one day after the U.S. Federal Reserve raised interest rates.

The Fed raised rates by 25 basis to 2%, its fourth increase this year, and left the door open for more rises in coming months.

Oil prices eased Thursday morning after moving close to US$49 a barrel as markets digested news of a rise in crude inventories but lower-than-expected U.S. heating oil stocks. Crude for December delivery was at US$48.58 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange by late morning in Europe, down 28¢ from its Wednesday close.

The Canadian dollar opened down 0.34 of a cent at US83.41¢ after rising 0.44 of a cent on Wednesday.

Due to the Remembrance Day and Veterans Day holidays, there are no major economic releases in Canada or the United States.

In today’s earnings news, Coca-Cola sharply lowered its long-term earnings and volume growth targets, as it boosted marketing spending to bolster its core brands. The company said it expects weakness in North America and other key markets to persist into 2005.

In other business news, PeopleSoft’s board yesterday rejected Oracle’s US$9.2 billion bid, arguing that the software firm’s business is now worth substantially more.

North American markets closed flat Wednesday following the decision by the U.S. Federal Reserve to raise interest rates. The S&P/TSX composite index closed down 3.49 points, or 0.04%, at 8,841.67. Volume was 289 million shares.

The junior S&P/TSX Venture composite index edged up 1.62 points to 1,632.67.

In New York, blue chips gave up their earlier gains after the Fed announcement, while technology shares fell amid disappointment over Cisco Systems’ sales outlook.

The Dow Jones industrial average closed down 0.89 of a point 10,385.48. The S&P 500 slipped 1.17 points to 1,162.91. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index dropped 8.77 points, or 0.43%, to 2,038.67.