It’s the Fed week.

Here are 4 tips for today's trading. This will help you decide where you should invest and what to look for:

1) Markets on hold

U.S. stock futures are pointing up, but the gains are muted -- as are global markets -- as investors wait for this week's Federal Reserve meeting. European markets are narrowly firmer in early trading, and Asian markets ended mixed: Hong Kong and India advanced but stocks in Japan and China fell back.

Shares in ARM Holdings (ARMH, Tech30) -- a British company that designs the chips that power iPhones and smartphones -- are rising by about 3% in London.

2) A chill from China

Chinese markets took another tumble Monday after the release of weak industrial production and investment data. Still, economists do not expect growth to slow sharply this year -- they estimate expansion of 6.9% for 2015, very close to the official 7% target. The Shenzhen index dropped by 6.7% and the Shanghai Composite declined by 2.7%.

3) Fed countdown

Analysts and economists are eagerly awaiting the upcoming meeting of Federal Reserve members on Wednesday and Thursday. A decision on interest rates will come out Thursday and is sure to have an immediate impact on the markets.

"The decision itself is arguably more important for the markets than anything else we've seen so far in 2015," said Angus Campbell, senior analyst at FxPro.

"There is still a minority that is of the view that the [Fed] will announce a [rate] hike this Thursday, but it's hard to see how a hike now will help investors given all that the financial markets have been though in the past few weeks, in particular emerging markets." 

4) Weekly market recap

The last week was generally positive and Friday ended on a high note. The Dow Jones industrial average ticked up 0.6% Friday, while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq each gained 0.5%.

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What is it? It's among the primary tools the BOJ uses to communicate with investors about monetary policy. It contains the outcome of their decision on interest rates and commentary about the economic conditions that influenced their decision. Most importantly, it projects the economic outlook and offers clues on the outcome of future rate decisions.

When? Tentative

Trading Tip: If the announcement will hint towards higher interest rates, you can expect the JPY to rise.

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What is it? It's a detailed record of the RBA Reserve Bank Board's most recent meeting, providing in-depth insights into the economic conditions that influenced their decision on where to set interest rates.

When? At 9:30pm Eastern Time.

Trading Tip: If the announcement will hint towards higher interest rates, you can expect the AUD to rise.

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1. U.S. stocks opened lower on Friday as investors awaited a decision on rate hike by the U.S. Federal Reserve next week. The Dow Jones industrial average (DJI) fell 52.78 points, or 0.32 percent, to 16,277.62, the S&P 500 (SPX) lost 6.56 points, or 0.34 percent, to 1,945.73 and the Nasdaq composite (IXIC) dropped 24.55 points, or 0.51 percent, to 4,771.71.

2. U.S. producer prices were flat in August, pointing to benign inflation pressures that could weigh on the Federal Reserve's decision whether to hike interest rates next week.

3. Oil prices fell on Friday after Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) cut its crude forecasts, citing global over-supply and concerns over the health of the Chinese economy, and after Saudi Arabia dismissed the idea of an oil producer summit.

4. U.S. core producer price inflation rose more-than-expected last month, official data showed on Friday. In a report, U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics - Department of Labor said that U.S. core PPI rose to a seasonally adjusted 0.3%, from 0.3% in the preceding month. Analysts had expected U.S. core PPI to rise 0.1% last month

5. A spike higher in the offshore yuan following suspected rare intervention by Chinese state banks is expected to be short-lived, especially with a looming U.S. interest rate rise likely to add to the attraction of owning dollars.

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The week got off to a roaring start, but markets look set to end it with a whimper.

Here are 4 tips for today's trading. This will help you decide where you should invest and what to look for:

1) Happy Friday?

There's a generally negative mood in the markets right now.

U.S. stock futures are edging down and European markets are dipping in early trading. Asian markets closed with mixed results.

This comes after stock markets soared Tuesday when U.S. traders returned from the Labor Day long weekend.

2) Oil falls again

In commodities, crude oil futures are dipping by about 2% to trade around $45 per barrel. The chances of another slump in prices to near $20 per barrel are rising, Goldman Sachs said in a new report Friday. But the supply glut should ease in 2016 as OPEC's rivals -- and in particular the U.S. -- slash production, the International Energy Agency said.

3) Earnings and economics

A few companies will open their earnings books before Friday trading begins. Mattress Firm (MFRM) and Kroger (KR) are among them.

On the economic side, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics will release its producer price index for August at 8:30 a.m. ET. This index is a key inflation indicator. Prices were up 0.2% in July.

Then, at 10 a.m. ET, the University of Michigan will put out September's consumer sentiment index.

4) Russian rates

Russia's central bank is set to make a decision on interest rates at around 6:30 a.m. ET. The benchmark interest rate is currently set at 11% and has come down from a recent high of 17%.

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What is it? It's a leading indicator of consumer inflation - when producers charge more for goods and services the higher costs are usually passed on to the consumer.

When? At 8:30am Eastern Time.

Trading Tip: If the actual number is higher than the forecast, you can expect the USD to rise.

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What is it? Financial confidence is a leading indicator of consumer spending, which accounts for a majority of overall economic activity.

When? At 8:30am Eastern Time.

Trading Tip: If the actual number is higher than the forecast, you can expect the USD to rise.

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