US stocks edge higher after worst day for markets in 2 years as wholesale inflation dips

• US stocks opened slightly higher Wednesday after the worst day for markets in more than two years.
• The August Producer Price Index dipped 0.1% from the prior month, meeting expectations.

US stocks opened slightly higher Wednesday, a day after markets suffered their largest daily loss since 2020 on unexpectedly high consumer prices.

Fresh producer price index data, which measures wholesale level prices, showed a decrease of 0.1% in August, matching expectations. Wholesale inflation is up overall 8.7% year-over-year, which is the slowest increase since 2021 and a steep pullback from July's jump of 9.8% yoy.

"These data will make no difference to the Fed's decision next week, but they serve as a reminder that the CPI numbers are not the only inflation data worth watching; the message from this report is that disinflation is underway," Ian Shepherdson, chief economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics wrote in a note on Wednesday. "It has much further to go."

Here's where US indexes stood as the market opened at 9:30 a.m. on Wednesday:

• S&P 500: 3,934.10, up 0.04%

• Dow Jones Industrial Average: 31,124.01, up 0.06% (19.04 points)

• Nasdaq Composite: 11,638.97, up 0.05%

Fresh market volatility may represent a good time for investors to jump back into stocks, according to Shark Tank's Kevin O'Leary. He added that while traders can't yet gauge where the bottom is, investors should "take opportunities on days like today and buy stocks that you think are attractive."

Apple's latest decline erased $9 billion from Berkshire Hathaway's position in the company. Warren Buffett's Hathaway owns roughly 5.6% of the iPhone maker.

Elsewhere, Russian energy company Rosneft reportedly paid only $1 for Norwegian oil major Equinor's assets, according to a report from Reuters.

Oil prices climbed, with West Texas Intermediate up 1.31% to $88.47 per barrel. International benchmark Brent crude jumped 1.04% to $94.12.

Gold ticked up 0.16% to $1,704.30 an ounce. The 10-year yield climbed 1.8 basis points to 3.439%.

Bitcoin was up 0.56% to $20,340.45.