Wall Street opens modestly higher, financial shares lead winners

• 10-year US T-bond yield rises 1% on Wednesday to boost financial shares.
• Stock indexes see choppy trading action in early trade.

Major equity indexes in the U.S. started the day modestly higher on Thursday but remain relatively calm following Wednesday's rally. As of writing, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.45% on the day while the Nasdaq Composite and the S&P 500 were both adding 0.25%.

Although markets assessed FOMC Chairman Powell's comments yesterday as a sign toward a dovish shift in the policy outlook, the 10-year Treasury bond yield continued to push higher today and was last up 1% on the day. The rate-sensitive S&P 500 Financials Index took advantage and is now up 0.45% on the day to lead the winners among 11 major S&P 500 sectors.

On the other hand, the Real Estate and the Materials indexes are in the negative territory in the early trade.