US stocks open with modest losses, Dow outperform on Caterpillar earnings

Major US equity indices witnessed a mixed opening on Monday, with the recent batch of disappointing earnings holding investors from placing any aggressive bullish bets. 

Meanwhile, the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) got a minor boost following encouraging second-quarter earnings report from Caterpillar. Meanwhile, the broader S&P 500 Index held in negative territory for the third consecutive session and remained under pressure from technology stocks. 

Internet-related companies, notably the FANG ground of stocks, tumbled last week after disappointing results from Facebook and Twitter and weighed on the broad market. Tech stocks will remain in limelight this week as investors look forward to the key earnings report from Apple late Tuesday.

Also in focus will be a two-day FOMC monetary policy meeting, where the Fed is universally expected to keep interest rates unchanged. Investors, however, will closely scrutinize the accompanying statement for additional clarity over the central bank's policy tightening cycle, which might eventually influence sentiment surrounding perceived riskier assets - like equities. 

At the time of writing this report, the DJIA ticked up by around 14-points to 25,460, while the S&P 500 Index and tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index held in negative territory with losses of anywhere between 0.15% to 0.50%.