Markets Right Now: US stocks edge lower in early trading

Wal-Mart Stores and JPMorgan Chase each fell 1 percent, among the biggest declines in the Dow Jones industrial average.

European stock markets are tracking their counterparts around the world higher as oil prices continue their advance and ahead of key U.S. inflation data.

The recent recovery in the price of oil towards $50 a barrel is being viewed by stock investors as a sign of an improving global economy.

Whether the rally perseveres may hinge on U.S. consumer price inflation data later.