Investing.com - U.S. stocks opened slightly higher on Tuesday, after Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen said that the central bank was likely to continue tapering its monthly bond-buying program in measured steps.
During early U.S. trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.23%, the S&P 500 edged 0.16% higher, while the Nasdaq Composite index rose 0.16%.
In prepared remarks released before her testimony to Congress later in the day, Fed Chair Yellen said that the central bank would taper the pace of its asset purchases at future meetings if the economy continued to improve as expected.
She added that the pace of the central bank’s bond purchases are not on a “preset course”, while reiterating that Fed plans to hold interest rates at zero “well past” the time the jobless rate falls below 6.5%.
Yellen was set to testify before lawmakers at 10 a.m. Eastern time.
Apple shares climbed 0.43%, even after the tech giant lost its latest bid to put a court-appointed antitrust monitor on hold.
Also in the tech sector, Google rose 0.22% after strking a major advertising deal with comScore on Monday, which could help the company win more business from big brands.
Among auto stocks, Tesla Motors gained 0.89% after the company said it wants its Model S to qualify for China’s electric car subsidies that the government said will remain more valuable than initially planned.
Meanwhile, General Motors jumped 1.23% amid reports Chief Executive Officer Mary Barra, who started his job last month, could receive total compensation this year of USD14.4 million, which is USD10 million more than the U.S. automaker previously disclosed.
In earnings news, Sprint reported fourth-quarter revenue that beat expectations, sending shares in the telecommunications company up 7.02%.
CVS Caremark surged 2.57% as the prescription drug provider announced fourth-quarter profit above estimates.
Meanwhile, Masco saw shares rally 3.53% even after posting fourth-quarter net revenue below estimates.
Across the Atlantic, European stock markets were sharply higher. The EURO STOXX 50 climbed 0.71%, France’s CAC 40 gained 0.44%, Germany's DAX jumped 1.29%, while Britain's FTSE 100 advanced 0.67%.
During the Asian trading session, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rallied 1.78%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index remained closed for a national holiday.