US Stock Markets Today: S&P 500, Dow Jones Open Little Changed

The main US stock market indices opened little changed on Thursday, with the broader index S&P 500 starting flat at 6,089.03, and the 30-stock Dow Jones Industrial Average rising marginally by 24.4 points to 45,038.44.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite opened 0.1% higher at 19,756.4 at the opening bell.

Although the trading commenced on a muted note, it signalled a resilience in the market, as the three indices had closed at record highs on Wednesday.

Among the 11 S&P 500 sectoral indices, six were edging higher and five traded in the red minutes after the markets opened. The gains were led by energy and consumer discretionary, whereas healthcare and industrials were the major drags.

Among the early gainers were cryptocurrency-related stocks such as MicroStrategy Inc, which advanced over 8% to $444.94, and Coinbase Global Inc, which was up 4.15% at $344.68. The rally was driven by the sharp climb in Bitcoin, as it topped $100,000-mark late on Wednesday.

Bitcoin's rally continued on Thursday, as the world's largest traded cryptocurrency jumped 4.8% to $102,561.78 after the markets opened.

The American dollar softened as trading commenced, with the Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index declining 0.54% to 105.738. The Euro gained by 0.64% to 1.0577 against the greenback.

Even as the dollar slipped from previous close, the yield on 10-Year US Treasury bond advanced by four basis points to 4.22%.

On the commodities front, spot gold was trading 0.4% lower at $2,640 an ounce at 9:58 a.m. (EST). The futures of Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, were up 0.65% at $72.77 a barrel.

Before the Wall Street opened, its Asian peers settled on a mixed note. Japan's Nikkei 225 jumped 0.3% and China's Shanghai Composite rose 0.12%, but Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index declined 0.92% and South Korea's KOSPI settled 0.9% lower. India's NSE Nifty 50, however, ended 0.98% higher in its fifth straight session of gain.