Indian shares bide time ahead of Fed decision

BENGALURU (Reuters) - Indian shares were little changed in early trading on Wednesday, as caution prevailed ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve's policy statement due later in the day, while an IMF cut to India's economic growth outlook kept investor sentiment in check.

The NSE Nifty 50 index was up 0.14% at 16,506.75, as of 0348 GMT, while the S&P BSE Sensex edged up 0.18% to 55,365.56.

The Fed is widely expected to hike rates by 75 basis points, with markets pricing about a 10% risk of a larger increase and watching for any shift in rhetoric.

Meanwhile, the International Monetary Fund, in an update of its World Economic Outlook on Tuesday, cut India's 2022 growth forecast to 7.4% from 8.2% in April, citing less favourable external conditions and more rapid policy tightening.

In Mumbai, construction major Larsen & Toubro gained 1.4% after beating estimates for quarterly profit.

Nifty 50 components Bajaj Finance, Maruti Suzuki and Tata Motors will report their results later in the day.

(Reporting by Chris Thomas in Bengaluru; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)