US stocks opened little changed on Thursday as concerns about a possible downgrade of global banks by Moody's were offset by upbeat US data on the labour and housing sectors.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 15.06 points, or 0.12%, at 12,796.01. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index was up 0.19 points, or 0.01%, at 1,343.42. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 1.50 points, or 0.05%, at 2,917.33.
Jobless claims unexpectedly fell last week to a near four-year low, another sign of improvement in the labor market, while January housing starts were also better than forecast.
Moody's said it might cut the credit ratings of 17 global and 114 European financial institutions in another sign the impact of the Eurozone debt crisis was spreading. Among the banks listed were Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs Group Inc and Bank of America Corp.