US stocks open lower amid earnings reports

US stocks opened lower as Wall Street meditated on a batch of earnings results.

Shortly after the opening bell on Wednesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 11.11 points, or 0.06 per cent, to 19,963.51, Xinhua news agency reported.

The S&P 500 decreased 1.68 points, or 0.07 per cent, to 2,269.08. The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 2.28 points, or 0.04 per cent, to 5,481.66.

After Tuesday's closing bell, Nike Inc. reported profits of 50 cents per share for the second quarter of its fiscal year 2017 ended November 30, on revenues of $8.2 billion.

Following the release of the better-than-expected quarterly results, shares of the athletic retailer rose about one percent in early trading Wednesday.

Shares of FedEx Corp. dropped nearly 3 per cent in early trading Wednesday after the US shipping giant reported earnings for the second quarter of its fiscal year 2017 that missed analysts' estimates.

On Tuesday, US stocks extended gains as the Bank of Japan (BOJ) kept its monetary policy unchanged after the conclusion of its two-day policy meeting.

--IANS

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