NEW YORK, May 19 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks opened lower on Monday as Moody's cutting of U.S. long-term issuer and senior unsecured ratings on Friday weighed on investor sentiment.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average opened at 42,542.81 points, 111.93 points or 0.26 percent lower from the previous close, while the S&P 500 opened at 5,902.88, down 55.5 points, or 0.93 percent. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq Composite Index kicked off at 18,937.42, 273.68 points or 1.42 percent lower from the previous close.
Still, U.S. stocks narrowed losses substantially in the first half hour of the morning session.
The yield of U.S. 10-year treasury bonds narrowed its gains on Monday morning showing an increase of 4.4 basis points from its close last Friday.
Moody's Ratings on Friday slashed U.S. long-term issuer and senior unsecured ratings to Aa1 from Aaa, citing rising government debt and interest payment ratios. ■
