Stocks opened lower Wednesday, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite leading major benchmarks to the downside after data showed a stronger-than-expected jump in the April consumer-price index. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 79 points, or 0.2%, to 34,190, while the S&P 500 fell 0.5% to 4,130. The Nasdaq dropped 1% to 13,244. April CPI rose 0.8% to match the biggest monthly increase since 2009, the government said. Economists had expected a reading of 0.2%. The rate of inflation over the past year jumped to 4.2% from 2.6% in the prior month – the highest level since 2008.
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