US stock market opens mixed with earnings

NEW YORK (AA) - The stock market opened mixed Wednesday as strong quarterly earnings in the banking sector were dragged down by the tech industry.

The Dow Jones added 29 points to open at 18,191. The S&P 500 remained flat with merely a little over a one point rise at 2,141. The Nasdaq, however, began the day with a three points loss at 5,239.

Strong earnings from major U.S. investments banks, Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs, helped to elevate the market at the opening bell.

The tech sector, however, began the day with losses.

Chip-maker giant Intel's stock price was down 5.5 percent, after the California-based company stated Tuesday that it expects personal computer chip sales to decline in the fourth quarter.

On the oil market, prices were up more than 1 percent after Saudi Arabia's Minister of Energy and Industry, Khalid Al-Falih, reiterated earlier Wednesday in London that many nations will join OPEC's plan to limit output.

At the first bell, American benchmark was trading at $50.92 a barrel with a 1.5 percent increase while International benchmark Brent crude was up 1.2 percent at $52.18 per barrel.

The global oil market will closely watch the change in the U.S.' weekly crude oil and gasoline inventories to be announced later Wednesday.