Wall St opens higher; Fed minutes eyed

Investors are remaining cautious due to heightened security concerns after last week's attacks in Paris

US stocks opened higher on Wednesday ahead of the release of the minutes of the Federal Reserve's October meeting, but investors remained cautious due to heightened security concerns after last week's attacks in Paris.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 27.66 points, or 0.16 percent, to 17,517.16, the S&P 500 gained 5.11 points, or 0.25 percent, to 2,055.55 and the Nasdaq Composite index added 17.33 points, or 0.35 percent, to 5,003.35.