US stocks stumble at opening after upbeat US inflation data

On the final trading day of the week, major US equity indices witnessed a downbeat opening session as Friday's release of upbeat inflation data from the US further fueled uncertainty over the Fed's near-term monetary policy outlook ahead of next week's policy meeting. 

The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 100 points to 18,110 while the S&P 500 index dropped 12 points to 2,135. Meanwhile, tech heavy Nasdaq composite gave up 19 point to 5,230. 

The latest government report measuring consumer inflation showed CPI rose 0.2% in August on a monthly basis, while yearly rise was recorded at 1.1%. Meanwhile, the core CPI, which excludes the volatile food and energy prices, climbed advanced 2.3% y-o-y. 

Adding to the weak sentiment, a fresh bout of weakness in crude oil prices exerted further selling pressure on energy stocks and weighed on the benchmark indices.

With the last set of important economic data now out of the way, traders now seem to prepare for a fresh bout of volatility and reposition themselves ahead of next week's key FOMC and BOJ monetary policy meetings.