US stocks open lower as inflation weighs on sentiment

Wall Street stocks fell again early Thursday, extending a downward period as markets focus on inflation, tightening monetary policy and the war in Ukraine.

Data on wholesale prices showed that price increases eased in April compared with the prior month but still stand 11 percent higher than a year ago.

The report "wasn't awful relative to expectations," said Briefing.com analyst Patrick O'Hare.

"The key takeaway from the report is that there was some moderation in the year-over-year changes, but even so, inflation rates for producers remain at intolerably high levels that will pressure profit margins if not passed along to customers."

About 25 minutes into trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.6 percent at 31,648.66.

The broad-based S&P 500 shed 0.8 percent to 3,903.27, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index dropped 1.1 percent to 11,239.06.

Among individual companies, Disney fell 3.8 percent as it reported lower profits but saw increases in subscribers to its Disney + streaming services and to its parks business. Analysts cited cautious commentary from the company about the second half of 2022.