Two of the three main US stock market indices opened marginally higher on Tuesday, as better-than-expected earnings reports posted by some of the top companies have sustained positive sentiment at Wall Street. The S&P 500 opened 0.1% higher at 5,866.74, whereas the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite opened 0.07% higher at 18,515.97.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average, however, slipped 0.2% to 43,240.17 at the opening bell.
Nine out of the 11 S&P 500 sectoral indices were trading higher, with consumer discretionary and financials leading the gains. The only two indices in the red were energy and healthcare.
Apple, which unveiled its new iPad mini powered by Apple Intelligence, was among the early gainers, with its stock rising 2.3% on the Nasdaq Composite.
Among other major companies, Bank of America advanced 2% in early trade as its quarterly results surpassed estimates, whereas UnitedHealth shed over 8% as its full-year earnings outlook was trimmed.
In the earnings season so far, around 40 S&P 500 companies have posted their results for the third quarter of 2024. According to FactSet, 80% of them have beaten the estimates.
The Bloomberg Dollar Index was down 0.24% at 103.05, with the British Pound gaining 0.25% to 1.308 against the greenback. The Euro was flat at 1.091.
Bitcoin, the largest cryptocurrency, was trading flat at $65,157.1 as the US markets opened.
Spot gold was trading marginally higher by 0.1% at $2,652.4 an ounce. The oil market continued to edge lower, with the futures of Brent, the global crude benchmark, trading 4.8% lower at $73.73 a barrel.
Before the Wall Street opened, Chinese stocks lost momentum as the buzz over Beijing's fiscal stimulus measures waned. The Hang Seng Index of Hong Kong declined 3.7%, and China's Shanghai Composite plunged 2.5%.
Among other Asian markets, Japan's Nikkei 225 closed 0.77% higher, whereas India's benchmark NSE Nifty 50 settled 0.28% lower.
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