US stocks have opened slightly higher ahead of the conclusion of a crucial US Federal Reserve policy meeting that could scale back the central bank’s aggressive bond-buying program.

Five minutes into trade on Wednesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 32.72 points (0.21 per cent) to 15,907.98.

The broad-based S&P 500 increased 1.70 (0.10 per cent) to 1,782.70, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index inched up 0.66 (0.02 per cent) to 4,0234.34

News from the Fed will dominate Wednesday’s session, with the central bank determining whether the economy is strong enough to absorb a reduction in the $US85 billion ($A95.79 billion) a month asset-purchase program.

Analysts disagree on whether the Fed will immediately taper the program.

A Fed policy statement at 2pm (0600 AEDT on Thursday) will be followed by a news conference with Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke.

European stock markets were strong following good German business confidence data and improved British unemployment.

The German DAX was up 1.0 per cent, the French CAC 40 rose 0.9 per cent and the British FTSE 100 increased 0.2 per cent.