Wall Street opens in red as financials weigh

After closing the first trading day of the week on a high note yesterday, major equity indexes in the U.S. started the day in the negative territory on Tuesday. At the moment, the Dow Jones Industrial Average is losing 0.35% on the day while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite are down 0.15% and 0.2%, respectively. Although there were no fundamental drivers that may have triggered a new wave of stocks-selling, the weakening risk appetite as reflected by a 1.5% increase in the CBOE Volatility Index seems to be the primary driver at the moment.

The sharp drop seen in the 10-year US T-bond yield on Tuesday weighs on the S&P 500 Financials Index, which is down around 0.5% in the early trade. Among the 11 S&P 500 major sectors, consumer staples and technology post modest gains.