NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Investors may play it safe Tuesday as the two-day Federal Reserve policy-setting meeting begins, with little economic news due to guide the markets.

Investors widely predict the central bank will raise the fed funds rate by a quarter-percentage point, and they will pay close attention to the Conference Board's consumer confidence survey for confirmation that the economic recovery is strong enough to support a higher overnight lending rate.

Analysts surveyed by Briefing.com believe June consumer confidence will hit 95 points, up from 93.2 points in May.

Mortgage lender Washington Mutual cut its 2004 earnings forecast after the bell Monday, citing the impact of higher long-term interest rates on its business. The company forecast per-share profit ranging between $3 and $3.60 for the year, versus analysts' forecast of $4.24 a share, according to earnings tracker First Call.

Washington Mutual (WM: Research, Estimates) stock plunged 10.8 percent in after-hours trade, after edging higher 0.3 percent in active trade Monday.

German-American auto maker DaimlerChrysler said Monday it will reduce its stake in Mitsubishi Motors Corp. to between 20 and 25 percent from 37 percent once the Japanese company wraps up a capital injection. Details of the decision are to follow Wednesday. Daimler will not take part in Mitsubishi's rescue plan.

DaimlerChrysler (DCX: Research, Estimates) stock gained 0.4 percent in active trading Monday on the New York Stock Exchange.

Citigroup Inc. said after hours Monday that it will sell part of its holdings in Taiwan's fifth-largest listed financial group, Fubon Financial Holding Co., because the two companies have different growth strategies.

Citigroup bought a combined 15 percent stake in five units of the Fubon Group in 2000, and will sell nearly 70 million shares, or 0.8 percent, of the Taiwanese company. Shares of New York-based Citigroup (C: Research, Estimates) edged 0.1 percent lower after hours on the INET electronic brokerage, after losing 28 cents at $46.52 on the New York Stock Exchange.

Pfizer Inc. will increase its biotechnology acquisitions, hoping to add to its line of experimental cancer drugs, the company's chief financial officer said late Monday. Shares in Pfizer (PFE: Research, Estimates), the world's largest drug maker, gained 0.7 percent in active trade on the NYSE and were little changed in after hours trade.

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eBay Inc. (EBAY: Research, Estimates) announced late Monday that it will focus on expansion in Asia's emerging markets, especially China. Shares dipped 0.4 percent after the bell on Inet.

The online marketplace made early headway into the China market by acquiring EachNet last year, and last week said it will buy India's No. 1 online auction site, Baazee.com, for $50 million.

Apple Computer Inc. unveiled its newest operating system, dubbed "Tiger," at its annual worldwide developer conference in San Francisco. Company CEO Steve Jobs said the system will be available to the public in 2005, a full year or two before rival Microsoft's new operating system will be ready. Apple (AAPL: Research, Estimates) stock dipped 0.3 percent in after-hours trading, after losing 3.6 percent, or $1.21, in active trade on the Nasdaq.

Specialty foods maker McCormick (MKC: Research, Estimates) will report earnings Tuesday, as will the Blackberry handheld device maker Research in Motion. (RIMM: Research, Estimates) The company is forecast to report earnings of 32 cents a share versus a loss of a penny a share a year earlier, according to First Call.  

-- from staff reports and wires