NEW YORK, March 1 — Wall Street stocks were little changed early today as Treasury bond yields pushed higher and retailers reported mixed results.
Investors remain fixated on the odds of more Federal Reserve interest rate hikes, eyeing the 10-year US Treasury note which pushed closer to four per cent.
Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari said in remarks today that he was open to a quarter or half point interest rate hike when the central bank next meets.
Investors have been concerned that with the US economy running hotter than policymakers hope, rates could stay higher for a longer period of time.
"The fear is that the Fed is going to overshoot, and they're going to raise rates too much and cause a recession," said Adam Sarhan of 50 Park Investment.
About 20 minutes into trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.1 per cent at 32,678.47.
The broad-based S&P 500 slipped 0.1 per cent to 3,966.41, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index added 0.1 per cent at 11,460.72.
Shares of home-improvement retailer Lowe's fell 2.6 per cent after reporting lower comparable sales in the fourth quarter, while department store Kohl's rose 3.6 per cent as it reported a US$273 million loss during the period.
Covid-19 vaccine maker Novavax plunged 24.1 per cent after it acknowledged that "substantial doubt exists" about its ability to continue operating.
The company was an early frontrunner in the global vaccine race, but fell behind after being hit by manufacturing and regulatory delays. — AFP
