US open: Stocks mixed as earnings take centre stage

Wall Street stocks were in the red early on Wednesday as corporate earnings continued to dominate markets.

As of 1520 BST, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.02% at 38,893.46, while the S&P 500 lost 0.18% to 5,178.58 and the Nasdaq Composite came out the gate 0.32% weaker at 16,281.02.

The Dow opened 9.20 points higher on Wednesday, narrowly extending gains recorded in the previous session as the blue-chip index recorded its longest winning streak since December.

Earnings were again in focus on Wednesday, with rideshare giant Lyft and hotels operator Wynn Resorts trading higher on the back of stronger-than-expected quarterly results, while Reddit shares rallied in premarket following its first earnings as a public company.

Shopify earnings topped estimates but shares still headed south following weaker-than-expected guidance, while Uber revealed it had swung to a quarterly loss despite reporting improved quarterly revenues.

Still to come, Airbnb, Bumble and AMC will report after the close.

On the macro front, mortgage applications rose by 2.6% in the week ended 3 May, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association of America, recovering from a 2.3% decline in the previous week and snapping a two week long streak of sharp declines. Applications for mortgages to purchase a new home rose by 1.8%, while applications to refinance a home jumped by 4.5%

Elsewhere, US wholesale inventories decreased by 0.4% month-on-month in March, matching preliminary estimates and following a downwardly revised 0.2% rise in February. Non-durables stocks saw a decrease of 1.1%, mainly on account of farm products, while inventories of durable goods fell 0.1% in March, according to the Census Bureau.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com