U.S. stocks mixed as Fed, Syria jitters persist; Dow Jones down 0.06%

Investing.com - U.S. stocks opened mixed on Wednesday, after the release of downbeat U.S. trade balance data, as expectations for the Federal Reserve to soon begin tapering its stimulus program continued to dominate investors' attention.

During early U.S. trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average eased 0.06%, the S&P 500 index inched up 0.07%, while the Nasdaq Composite index added 0.21%.

Official data showed that the U.S. trade deficit widened more-than-expected in July, falling to USD39.2 billion from a downwardly revised USD34.5 billion deficit the previous month. Analysts had expected the trade deficit to widen to USD38.7 billion in July.

The data came as investors continued to speculate over the timing of the Federal Reserve’s widely expected reduction in monthly bond purchases after data on Tuesday showed that manufacturing activity in the U.S. expanded at the fastest rate since April 2011 in August.

Meanwhile, investors remained cautious after top congressional leaders, including Republican House Speaker John Boehner and Democrat Nancy Pelosi said they would back President Obama's call for military intervention in Syria.

Verizon Communications slipped 0.24% a day after Vodafone confirmed it was selling its stake in Verizon Wireless to the U.S. compmay for USD130 billion.

U.S.-traded Vodafone shares were down 0.12%.

On the upside, U.S. traded Nokia shares jumped 1.27%, after gaining over 30% on Tuesday, when Microsoft said it was purchasing the Finnish company's mobile phone business for USD7.2 billion.

Microsoft saw shares tumble 1.67% at the open of the U.S. trading session.

In the auto sector, Ford Motor Company rallied 1.47% even as Moody's Investors Service said on Wednesday that it expected the U.S. company, as well as General Motors, Fiat and Peugeot-Citroen to lose a combined total of EUR5 billion in the region this year.

Among earnings, Dollar General posted quarterly results that topped market expectations, helped by strong demand for its perishables, snacks and recently-added tobacco products, sending shares up 2.91%.

Other stocks likely to be in focus included Ciena and SAIC, scheduled to report second-quarter earnings later in the day.

Across the Atlantic, European stock markets were lower. The EURO STOXX 50 retreated 0.91%, France’s CAC 40 tumbled 1%, Germany's DAX declined 0.76%, while Britain's FTSE 100 slid 0.46%.

During the Asian trading session, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index shed 0.31%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index climbed 0.54%.