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WALL STREET OPENS LOWER ON HOT INFLATION

Wall Street's three major indexes are lower in Wednesday's early trade, hitting their lowest points in roughly a week after hotter than expected inflation data faded hopes for Federal Reserve rate cuts, while Treasury yields rose with the dollar.

U.S. consumer prices increased by the most in nearly 1-1/2 years in January, with Americans facing higher costs for housing and food, reinforcing the Fed's message that it was in no rush to resume cutting rates with growing uncertainty over the economy.

Higher prices, likely partly due to businesses raising prices at the start of the year, offered a cautionary note to President Donald Trump's push for tariffs on imported goods, which has been panned by some economists as inflationary.

Nearly all of the S&P 500's .SPX 11 major industry sectors are in the red with rate sensitive real estate .SPLRCR showing the biggest loss. Healthcare .SPXHC is the sole gainer, rising around 0.3%.

In individual stocks, CVS Health CVS.N is advancing 14.5% after the healthcare conglomerate beat fourth-quarter profit estimates. But ride-hailing company Lyft LYFT.O is down 7.6% after it forecast current-quarter gross bookings below estimates and warned that lower pricing trends from late last year are expected to continue in 2025, as it tries to match prices with larger rival Uber UBER.N.

Here is your morning snapshot:

(Sinéad Carew)

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FOR WEDNESDAY'S EARLIER LIVE MARKETS POSTS:

U.S. STOCK FUTURES SLIDE, YIELDS SURGE, AFTER HOT CPI - CLICK HERE

LOOKING AT ITALIAN BANKS M&A? HANDLE WITH CARE! - CLICK HERE

"SHORT COVERING IS DONE... BUT DON'T FADE EUROPE YET" - CLICK HERE

RAFT OF POSITIVE EARNINGS KEEP STOXX SWEET - CLICK HERE

EUROPE BEFORE THE BELL: GAINS AHEAD ON SWEET EARNINGS, CPI LOOMS - CLICK HERE

MARKETS LOOK TO US CPI WITH ONE EYE ON TARIFFS - CLICK HERE