US stocks hold steady as the countdown ticks to a Federal Reserve decision on interest rates

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks are drifting Wednesday as the countdown ticks toward this afternoon’s announcement from the Federal Reserve on what it will do with interest rates . The S&P 500 rose 0.1% and pulled within 1.1% of its all-time high , which was set earlier this month. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 144 points, or 0.3%, as of 10:15 a.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was…