US open: Stocks higher as investors thumb over PPI data

(Sharecast News) - Wall Street stocks were higher early on Tuesday as market participants digested key inflation data. As of 1530 BST, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.19% at 39,504, while the S&P 500 advanced 0.25% to 5,234.24 and the Nasdaq Composite came out the gate 0.48% firmer at 16,466.84.

The Dow opened 73.24 points higher on Tuesday, almost reversing yesterday's losses.

Tuesday's primary focus was April's producer price index, which revealed that US producer prices rebounded more than expected last month after a downwardly revised fall in March, with the annual rate of inflation rising to its highest level in a year.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics said its producer price index increased by 0.5% month-on-month in April, compared with a fall of 0.1% in March, which was revised from the 0.2% increase initially recorded. This was ahead of the 0.3% increase expected by economists, with nearly three-quarters of April's gain coming from an increase in the index for final demand services.

Elsewhere on the macro front, the National Federation of Independent Business revealed on Tuesday that optimism among small businesses in the US has increased for the first time this year, but still remains well below the long-term average as inflation continues to weigh on confidence. The NFIB's small business optimism index rose by 1.2 points in April to 89.7, as the sales outlook and job-creation expectations both improved.

In the corporate space, shares in GameStop and AMC surged in early trading after "Roaring Kitty", the Reddit user at the centre of the meme stock craze, posted online for the first time in three years.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com

Dow Jones - Risers

Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $18.41 1.60% Boeing Co. (BA) $181.08 1.48% Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $459.23 1.25% 3M Co. (MMM) $100.53 0.90% American Express Co. (AXP) $240.40 0.73% Nike Inc. (NKE) $93.38 0.71% Intel Corp. (INTC) $30.73 0.70% Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $359.16 0.70% Dow Chemical Co. (DOW) $59.68 0.54% Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $309.98 0.50%

Dow Jones - Fallers

Visa Inc. (V) $275.03 -1.56% Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $128.21 -0.84% Walmart Inc. (WMT) $59.94 -0.79% Home Depot Inc. (HD) $338.70 -0.66% Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $164.89 -0.59% Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $63.22 -0.57% Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $105.25 -0.55% Chevron Corp. (CVX) $163.75 -0.47% McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $270.39 -0.34% Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $48.63 -0.11%

S&P 500 - Risers

CenturyLink Inc. (LUMN) $1.36 8.40% Kohls Corp. (KSS) $27.27 5.21% Illumina Inc. (ILMN) $117.44 4.14% Foot Locker Inc. (FL) $23.54 3.52% Globe Life Inc. (GL) $88.10 3.48% Sl Green Realty Corp. (SLG) $54.51 2.85% Harley-Davidson Inc. (HOG) $36.16 2.79% Seagate Technology Plc (STX) $95.74 2.78% Charles Schwab Corp. (SCHW) $76.74 2.72% Charter Communications Inc. (CHTR) $281.98 2.67%

S&P 500 - Fallers

Marathon Petroleum Corporation (MPC) $169.45 -4.73% Nektar Therapeutics (NKTR) $1.67 -4.29% Constellation Brands Inc. Class A (STZ) $254.06 -1.82% O'Reilly Automotive Inc. (ORLY) $996.69 -1.59% Quanta Services Inc. (PWR) $261.26 -1.57% Visa Inc. (V) $275.03 -1.56% Copart Inc. (CPRT) $53.88 -1.31% Diamondback Energy Inc. (FANG) $198.23 -1.27% Eaton Corporation plc (ETN) $324.38 -1.26% Valero Energy Corp. (VLO) $153.97 -1.26%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

Illumina Inc. (ILMN) $117.44 4.14% Vodafone Group Plc ADS (VOD) $9.04 3.08% Seagate Technology Plc (STX) $95.74 2.78% Charter Communications Inc. (CHTR) $281.98 2.67% American Airlines Group (AAL) $15.28 2.35% Sirius XM Holdings Inc (SIRI) $3.21 2.21% Idexx Laboratories Inc. (IDXX) $512.36 1.86% Gen Digital Inc. (GEN) $24.42 1.75% Tesla Inc (TSLA) $174.71 1.64% Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $18.41 1.60%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers

Baidu Inc. (BIDU) $108.96 -2.53% JD.com, Inc. (JD) $33.04 -2.18% O'Reilly Automotive Inc. (ORLY) $996.69 -1.59% NetEase Inc. Ads (NTES) $98.06 -1.44% Amazon.Com Inc. (AMZN) $184.46 -1.13% Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (VRTX) $425.18 -1.10% Asml Holdings N.V. (ASML) $907.41 -1.07% Adobe Systems Inc. (ADBE) $478.19 -1.02% CSX Corp. (CSX) $34.24 -0.80% Biogen Inc (BIIB) $223.57 -0.79%