US STOCKS-Wall Street cautious ahead of Fed policy statement

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* Fed policy statement expected at 2 p.m. ET
* Dow up 0.06%, S&P off 0.03%, Nasdaq down 0.07%

(Updates to early afternoon)
By Shreyashi Sanyal
June 19 (Reuters) - Wall Street's main indexes took a pause
on Wednesday, after a rally the previous day, as investors held
back from making big bets ahead of the Federal Reserve's policy
statement that is expected to lay the groundwork for future
interest rate cuts.
Markets have climbed this month, with the S&P 500 .SPX
index gaining 6% so far and 1% away from its all-time high hit
in early May, fueled by hopes of a rate cut.
The Fed's statement and new economic projections are
scheduled to be released at 2 p.m. ET (1800 GMT), providing
investors an opportunity to gauge the impact of a prolonged
U.S.-China trade conflict, President Donald Trump's continued
demands for a rate cut and softer-than-expected economic data on
monetary policy. The U.S. central bank will likely leave rates unchanged, but
the market is factoring in a cut as soon as next month. Fed
Chairman Jerome Powell will hold a press conference at 2:30 p.m.
ET (1830 GMT).
"There is a sense of caution, investors are not willing to
take too much risk because there seems to be so much ambiguity
on whether there is going to be a rate cut or hike in this
meeting," said Matt Ruffalo, senior strategist at Clarfeld
Financial Advisors.
"It is very important for Powell to be balanced in his
comments and not tip the scale in any direction. More so,
investors are focused on what course of policy action needs to
be taken going forward."
U.S. Treasury yields rose on Wednesday, tracking the
European market, after steep falls the previous day, as
investors rebalanced positions ahead of the Fed decision. US/
The financial sector .SPSY gained 0.49%, with bank stocks
.SPXBK rising 0.53%.
At 12:53 p.m. ET the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI was
up 14.70 points, or 0.06%, at 26,480.24 and the S&P 500 was down
0.77 points, or 0.03%, at 2,916.98.
The Nasdaq Composite .IXIC was down 5.34 points, or 0.07%,
at 7,948.54.
The healthcare sector .SPXHC rose 0.41%, helped by gains
in UnitedHealth Group Inc UNH.N , Pfizer Inc PFE.N and
Allergan Plc AGN.N .
Allergan jumped 5.64% after the drugmaker said its
constipation drug, jointly developed with Ironwood
Pharmaceuticals Inc IRWD.O , improved symptoms in patients
suffering from irritable bowel syndrome with constipation.

Adobe Inc ADBE.O gained 4.63% after the Photoshop software
provider beat analysts' estimates for quarterly profit and
revenue.
Advancing issues outnumbered decliners for a 1.03-to-1 ratio
on the NYSE and a 1.11-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.
The S&P index recorded 19 new 52-week highs and two new
lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 44 new highs and 50 new lows.