Wall Street opens mostly higher, led by tech

US stock indices opened the last session of the week higher, with Microsoft leading the tech sector higher amid the second-quarter earnings season for major American banks and corporations. 

White House economic advisor Larry Kudlow said President Donald Trump won't back off trade escalation with China, accusing China of failing to present solutions to counter the stealing of intellectual property and US technologies.  

Trump Blasts EU, China 

President Donald Trump tweeted earlier: "China, the European Union and others have been manipulating their currencies and interest rates lower, while the U.S. is raising rates while the dollars gets stronger and stronger with each passing day - taking away our big competitive edge. As usual, not a level playing field.."

He added: "Farmers have been on a downward trend for 15 years. The price of soybeans has fallen 50% since 5 years before the Election. A big reason is bad (terrible) Trade Deals with other countries. They put on massive Tariffs and Barriers. Canada charges 275% on Dairy. Farmers will WIN!"

President Donald Trump criticized the Federal Reserve in an interview with CNBC, saying he's "not thrilled" with rate hike decisions that lead to a stronger dollar, while China's yuan falls like a rock. 

He commended Fed Chair Jerome Powell as a "good man", adding he won't intervene into the Fed's actions, with the remarks overall weighing on the dollar on currency war concerns. 

In his two-day testimony before the two chambers of Congress, Fed Chair Jerome Powell pointed to strong economic growth this year with continued improvement in the labor market and inflation rates, while cautioning from short-term consequences to trade protectionism. 

Stock Performance 

As of 02:30 GMT, Standard and Poor's 500 rose 0.01%, or 0.24 points to 2,804.73, while Dow Jones added 0.08%, or 20.30 points to 25,084.80. 

Tech-heavy NASDAQ rose 0.27%, or 21.20 points to 7,846.50.