European stocks (.STOXX) fell as much as 0.5% in early trading, with rate-sensitive tech stocks (.SX8P) losing 0.8%.
And the latest spike in oil prices to 10-month highs is unlikely to escape the Fed's attention.
Fuelling worries over persistent inflation were oil prices, which firmed after hitting a 10-month peak a day earlier.
ECB HIKE BETSThe euro was down 0.1% at $1.074, after nearing one-week highs on the Reuters story which was published late on Tuesday.
"The leak raises the possibility of a hawkish hike which would be much more supportive for the EUR," said Steve Englander, global head of G10 FX research at Standard Chartered, referring to the Reuters report.
Persons:
Androniki, Robert Alster, you'll, Steve Englander, Tom Wilson, Stella Qiu, Shri Navaratnam, Christina Fincher
Organizations:
Nikkei, REUTERS, Consumer, Index, Federal Reserve, Management, European Central Bank, Reuters, ECB, Nasdaq, Brent, U.S, West Texas, Markets, Standard Chartered, Thomson
Locations:
Tokyo, Japan, SYDNEY, Asia, Pacific, London, Sydney