Stock market today: Wall Street rises in early trading, though bond yields remain high

NEW YORK — Stocks are opening slightly higher on Wall Street following some encouraging profit reports from big companies. The S&P 500 was up 0.3% early Thursday, trimming its slump for August. The Dow rose 94 points and the Nasdaq composite rose 0.2%. Cisco Systems helped lead the way with a gain of 3.6%. The maker of networking products reported stronger profit and revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected.

Inflation has slowed significantly since the central bank started its rate-raising campaign a year-and-a-half ago, but with consumer prices up 3.2% year-over-year, it's still higher than the Fed's target of 2%. Despite the furious pace of rate hikes, the labor market is robust and Americans remain the economic engine for the U.S. as they continue to spend.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell said Wednesday that the Fed staff no longer projects a recession this year but sees an economic slowdown with risks to growth tilted to the downside and risks to inflation tilted to the upside. Walmart reported strong second-quarter sales results Thursday as the retailer’s low-price model continues to attract budget-conscious consumers. Shares rose 2% before the bell as the nation’s largest retailer boosted its annual outlook again.At midday in Europe, the FTSE 100 in London fell 0.4%, while the CAC 40 in Paris and the DAX in Frankfurt were each down less than 0.1%.

Yields widened further after the release of Fed notes increased expectations of another possible rate hike. When safer bonds pay higher returns, investors often feel less incentive to buy stocks, which have more volatile prices.

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