US stocks subdued during early trade

Major US equity indices witnessed a rather lackluster opening on Thursday as investors digested yesterday's hawkish FOMC announcement. 

The Fed signaled it could raise interest rates for the third time this year, despite low inflation, and disclosed a plan to start shrinking its massive $4.5 trillion balance sheet.

On the economic data front, weekly jobless claims fell sharply during the week ended September 15, while the Philly Fed manufacturing index rose to a three-month high but did little to help the markets to keep pushing higher, especially after the recent rally to fresh record highs. 

During the opening hour of trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down around 15-points to 22,397, while the broader S&P 500 Index lost 4-points to 2,504. Meanwhile, tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite underperformed the broader indices and fell over 20-points to 6,435.

Thursday's key focus would be on the US President Donald Trump's important announcement on effort to resolve North Korea problem. Bloomberg reports that Trump will unveil new sanctions and a fresh provocation could seriously dent investors' appetite for riskier assets - like equities.