US STOCKS-Futures down ahead of Fed statement, GDP data

* Futures down: Dow 20 pts, S&P 2.5 pts, Nasdaq 9 pts

By Tanya Agrawal

April 29 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures were lower on Wednesday as investors await the outcome of the two-day Federal Reserve meeting and ahead of U.S. economic growth numbers for the first quarter.

* The Fed is not expected to raise interest rates. But investors will closely examine the central bank's statement for clues on when rates are likely to be increased, as a batch of soft data could push back the timing of a hike until the end of the year. The statement is expected at 1400 p.m. EDT (1800 GMT).

* U.S. gross domestic product likely braked sharply in the first quarter as harsh weather dampened consumer spending and energy companies struggling with low prices cut spending. GDP probably expanded at a 1.0 percent annual rate, down from the 2.2 percent growth rate in the fourth quarter.

GDP numbers are due at 8:30 a.m. EDT (1230 GMT).

* Twitter (Xetra: A1W6XZ - news) shares were up 0.5 percent at $42.48 in premarket trading. The stock slumped as much as 24 percent after market on Tuesday as the company cut its full-year forecast due to weak demand for its new direct response advertising.

* Lumber Liquidators (NYSE: LL - news) slumped 15.4 percent to $28.25 after reporting a 2 percent fall in net sales so far in April and did not provide a full-year forecast.

* Time Warner Inc (Xetra: AOL1.DE - news) shares rose 1.2 percent to $69.00 after the company's revenue rose 5 percent.

* Companies expected to report results on Wednesday include MasterCard, Marriott International (NasdaqGS: MAR - news) and Yelp .

Futures snapshot at 7:10 a.m. EDT (1110 GMT)

* S&P 500 e-minis were down 2.5 points, or 0.12 percent, with 76,198 contracts traded.

* Nasdaq 100 e-minis were down 9 points, or 0.2 percent, on volume of 11,579 contracts.

* Dow e-minis were down 20 points, or 0.11 percent, with 13,320 contracts changing hands. (Reporting by Tanya Agrawal; Editing by Savio D'Souza)