Stocks slump on Fed stance Australian shares have opened lower after the US Federal Reserve indicated it could wind back of its massive stimulus program for the world's largest economy before too long. Shortly after the beginning of trade, the A&P/ASX200 had dumped 1.5 per cent, with a similar result from the broader All Ordinaries index. ""Growth forecasts were upgraded ... (interest) rates look like holding at near zero till at least 2015 ... and it is going to retain the mortgage-backed securities purchased during QE on the balance sheet till expiry - all very supportive,"" Mr Lucas said. ""Today will be a very interesting positioning day. It will be a very tough day to be a bottom-up investor."" SPI futures are 52 points lower at 4784 The $A is lower at 92.66 In New York, the S&P500 lost 1.39% to 1628.93 In Europe, the FTSE100 lost 0.4% to 6348.82 China iron ore gained $US2.30 to $US120 a metric tonne Gold lost 1.2% to $US1350.20. an ounce WTI crude oil lost 40 US cents to $US98.01 a barrel Reuters/Jefferies CRB index added 0.53% to 287.96 Commonwealth Bank business sales indicator for May RBA quarterly bulletin is released GPT Group raised to neutral at Credit Suisse Toll raised to overweight at JPMorgan US stocks fell sharply after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said the central bank expects to taper bond-buying purchases later this year. Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 1.34% to 15,112.73 Nasdaq Composite lost 1.12% to 3,443.20 Europe's main stock markets pulled back in careful trade, with traders on tenterhooks before the outcome of the US Federal Reserve's latest monetary policy gathering. London's FTSE 100 lost 0.44% to 6345.94 Frankfurt's DAX 30 lost 0.15% to 8217.52 In Paris the CAC 40 shed 0.32% to 3848.34 Asian markets were mostly lower, with focus on the US Federal Reserve's policy meeting later in the trading day. But Tokyo enjoyed another rally as data showed a surge in exports thanks to a weaker yen. Wall Street again provided a healthy cue, with investors betting the Fed will stop short of reeling in its ""quantitative easing"" (QE) bond-buying program. Japan's NIkkei added 1.83% to 13,245.22 China's Shanghai composite lost 0.73% to 2,143.45 Hong Kong Hang Seng lost 1.13% to 20,986.89 Despite an unexpected build in US oil inventories, US oil prices declined only modestly.Analysts said the small price decline showed the oil market's continued bullishness. US benchmark West Texas Intermediate for delivery in August dipped 20 US cents to $US98.24 a barrel. In London European benchmark Brent crude for August added 10 US cents at $US106.12. Gold prices fell to a four-week low in after-market trade after Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke sketched a possible time line for ending the central bank's bond-buying program. Following Bernanke's remarks, gold prices touched $US1,348.50 an ounce in electronic trading, the lowest level since May 20. The most active contract, for August delivery, had settled at $US1,374 an ounce, up 0.5 per cent, ahead of Bernanke's press conference on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. Copper closed at a fresh six-week low on the London Metal Exchange (LME), weighed by investor caution ahead of a closely-watched US central bank policy statement later in the day. At the PM kerb close on Wednesday, LME three-month copper was down 0.6 per cent at $US6,960 a metric ton, its lowest close since May 2.Aluminum settled 0.6 per cent lower at $US1,830 a ton. Nickel performed relatively well on Wednesday, ending the session 0.4 per cent higher at $US14,195 a ton as opportunistic buyers scooped up the metal at lower price levels. Australian shares have gained ground as investors took a cautiously optimistic stance ahead of a keenly awaited update on economic stimulus measures in the United States. The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was up 47 points, or 0.98 per cent, at 4,861.4, while the broader All Ordinaries index was up 47.2 points, or 0.98 per cent, at 4,841.8.