Stocks Opened Slightly Higher amid Retail Earnings

U.S. stocks opened slightly higher on Wednesday, as investors digested quarterly results from retail firms. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately rose 13.15 points, or 0.07%, to 18,546.20. The S&P 500 was off 1.49 points, or 0.07%, to 2,180.25. The Nasdaq Composite was down 7.38 points, or 0.14%, to 5,218.10.

Before the bell, Michael Kors posted quarterly results that beat expectations on both lines. Meanwhile, Ralph Lauren shares popped more than 6 percent after its earnings came in sharply above expectations.

The Bank of Japan plans to maintain its pledge to hit its 2% annual inflation target at the earliest possible date, according to a preliminary outline of a promised policy assessment, Reuters reported Wednesday.

Shares of solar panel company SunPower dropped over 31% in premarket trading Wednesday as the company announced 1,200 layoffs, struggles with its power plant division and a revised 2016 outlook.

The credit card is coming back, even among people with the lowest credit scores. In the second quarter, total household debt increased by $35 billion to $12.3 trillion, according to the New York Fed’s latest quarterly report on household debt.