U.S. stock indexes opened modestly higher on Friday despite a stronger-than-expected reading on April inflation, complicating the Federal Reserve’s decision on whether to keep raising interest rates at its June meeting. The Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA was up 50 points, or 0.2%, to 32,832. The S&P 500 SPX added 0.2%, and the Nasdaq Composite COMP advanced 0.3%. The core PCE index, the Fed’s preferred gauge of inflation, rose 0.4% in April, more than the 0.3% increase that economists had expected. Core inflation strips out volatile food and energy prices. The yearly increase in prices rose to 4.4% from 4.2% in the prior month, also higher than expected.
Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.