Wall St opens flat as gov't shutdown continues

US stocks opened flat on Tuesday on faint signs of progress to resolve the fiscal standoff in Washington, which has closed much of the federal government.

The Dow Jones industrial average was down 19.01 points, or 0.13 percent, at 14,917.23. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index was down 0.64 points, or 0.04 percent, at 1,675.48. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 1.75 points, or 0.05 percent, at 3,772.13.