NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - U.S. stocks were pointed in a positive direction early Wednesday, the day after the Federal Reserve signaled that interest rate hikes are in the offing.

For details of Tuesday's session, click above.

Early Wednesday, Nasdaq futures were solidly higher, with S&P futures up modestly.

While the Fed left interest rates unchanged, as expected, its statement removed the promise to be patient before it raised rates. Its new statement said "Accommodation can be removed at a pace that is likely to be measured."

The question for investors now is whether that is a signal a rate hike will come at its June meeting, or if the central bank will wait until August or September for a hike.

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The fed funds futures contracts at the Chicago Board of Trade for a change at the June meeting eased slightly after the statement, to 42 percent from 50 percent before the statement. But some analysts read the statement as increasing the chance of a June hike.

"I think this puts the odds of a rate increase at their June 29-30 meeting at about 50 percent," said David Kelly, senior economist at Putnam Investments.

The ambiguous nature of the Fed's statement puts more focus again on upcoming economic reports, especially the April employment report due Friday. But first up Wednesday will be the Institute of Supply Management's services index, due at 10 a.m. ET. Analysts surveyed by Briefing.com forecast it will fall to 65.0 from a record 65.8 level in March.

Treasury prices rallied in early trading, sending the 10-year note yield down to 4.52 percent from 4.56 percent late Tuesday. The dollar retreated against the yen and euro.

The Nasdaq composite index led Tuesday's modest advance in the wake of the Fed policy announcement; it was up 0.6 percent. The Dow industrials was just 3 points higher when the day was done (see chart for details).

Asian-Pacific stocks ended mixed Wednesday, with some markets -- particularly Japan -- closed for holidays. European markets were little changed in late-morning trade. (Check the latest on world markets)

Among U.S. stocks trading in Europe, Coca-Cola (KO: Research, Estimates) was slightly lower. Former company executive Neville Isdell was named the new chairman of the soft-drink company Tuesday evening, succeeding Douglas Daft.

Brent oil futures pulled back from recent 13-year highs, down 11 cents to $35.82 a barrel in London. Gold was higher.

In corporate news, Royal Bank of Scotland announced it was expanding its U.S. presence by reaching an agreement to buy Cleveland-based bank Charter One Financial for about $10.5 billion in cash. RBS will pay $44.50 a share for Charter One (CF: Research, Estimates), a 24 percent premium from the closing price of $35.95 on Tuesday.

Shares of Charter One gained $8.05 to $44 in after-hours trading Tuesday, while shares of RBS were off about 5 percent in London trading early Wednesday.

Prudential Financial (PRU: Research, Estimates) reported improved first quarter earnings said after the close Tuesday that its quarterly earnings rose to 74 cents a share, excluding special items, up from 58 cents a share a year earlier. That topped the EPS forecast of earnings tracker First Call by a penny.