US open: Stocks higher following Powell comments

Wall Street stocks were in the green early on Tuesday as market participants digested comments from Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell regarding rate hikes.

As of 1530 GMT, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.69% at 34,790.87, while the S&P 500 was 1.14% firmer at 4,512.24 and the Nasdaq Composite came out the gate 2.06% stronger at 14,123.80.

The Dow opened 237.88 points higher on Tuesday, reversing losses recorded in the previous session amid the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict and the crash of a passenger plane in China.

Comments from the Fed chair from a day earlier were still on focus at the opening bell on Tuesday, with Powell potentially opening the door for the central bank to take a more aggressive monetary policy stance moving forward. Powell stated the Fed must move "expeditiously" to bring too-high inflation under control, adding it will, if needed, use bigger-than-usual interest rate hikes to do so.

Commodity prices were also drawing an amount of investor attention, with Brent futures easing off after surging on Monday on the back of news that the European Union was mulling over the idea of banning Russian oil.

Investors were also still closely watching the conflict in Eastern Europe, with president Joe Biden stating Russian president Vladimir Putin's back was "against the wall" as his war with Ukraine nears a stalemate.

On the macro front, the Richmond Fed composite manufacturing index increased to 13 in March, a marked improvement when compared to February's reading of 1, pointing to an improvement in Fifth District manufacturing activity as increases were seen in all components.

Still to come, Federal Reserve presidents John Williams, Mary Daly and Loretta Master will all deliver speeches later on in the day.

In the corporate space, Nike shares were in the green after the retailer posted third-quarter earnings that beat on both the top and bottom line thanks to solid demand in North America, while Carnival shares were down 1.07% after posting disappointing quarterly sales as a spike in Covid-19 cases impacted demand.

Adobe will update on recent trading after the close.