U.S. stocks are falling as investors turn their attention to the Fed meeting

Investing.com — U.S. stocks were falling on Friday but headed for a positive week as investors turn their attention to the Federal Reserve’s next interest rate decision.

At 9:38 ET (13:38 GMT), the was down 27 points or 0.1% while the was down 0.4% and the was down 0.5%.

The three major Wall Street indices posted strong gains on Thursday, helped by the positive reaction to the debut of chip designer Arm (NASDAQ:) after its listing.

The blue-chip ended up over 330 points, or 1%, while the broad-based and the tech-heavy gained 0.8%.

These gains mean the indices are heading for a winning week, with the DJIA on pace for gains of around 1%, the S&P 500 around 1.1% and the Nasdaq 1.2%.

Arm’s success could prompt more listings

Arm Holdings stock soared almost 25% above its Nasdaq debut price on Thursday and was up another 5% on Friday, boding well for other deals already in the pipeline, including the debut of delivery platform Instacart as early as this month. 

About 150 companies are waiting to go public on the Nasdaq, a 40% increase from the same time last year, Reuters reported Friday, citing sources.

Consumer sentiment on data slate

Economic data released during the last session, including the report, showed a resilient consumer heading into the holiday shopping season.

Investors are turning their attention to next week’s Federal Reserve policy-setting meeting, looking for clues to help clarify the policy path ahead for both Fed officials and markets alike. Futures traders are largely expecting the Fed to keep rates steady after raising them at 11 of is past 12 meetings, though investors will be listening carefully to what Chair Jerome Powell says at his press conference for clues on Fed policy making for the rest of the year.

The highlight of economic data on Friday will be a preliminary September consumer sentiment reading from the . 

Sentiment was boosted earlier Friday after Chinese increased by more than expected in August, and there was also a pick-up in .

Auto workers go on strike

Members of the United Auto Workers have gone on strike at three major assembly plants for the first time ever after failed talks between the union and the so-called “Big Three” major carmakers on a new labor contract.

The walkouts hit factories in Michigan, Ohio, and Missouri owned by General Motors (NYSE:), Ford Motor (NYSE:) and Jeep-maker Stellantis (NYSE:).

In terms of quarterly earnings, software maker Adobe (NASDAQ:) beat revenue estimates for the third quarter after the close Thursday, while homebuilder Lennar (NYSE:) reported third-quarter profit above expectations.

Crude set for strong weekly gains

Oil prices rose Friday, climbing to their highest level since early November last year, on the back of more stimulus measures as well as the better-than-expected economic data from major importer China.

Both benchmarks were up around 4% from a week ago, on course for a third weekly gain.

(Peter Nurse and Oliver Gray contributed to this item.)