US stocks open higher, Dow again aiming for 26K mark

Major US equity indices regained traction on Wednesday and moved back within striking distance of record levels, touched in the previous session.

The move comes a day after the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) saw its biggest one-day reversal in almost two-years amid growing concerns of a possible government shutdown. 

Meanwhile, investors' focus would remain on a flurry of corporate earnings results, especially from financial heavyweights. Against the backdrop of stretched valuations, earnings reports might now turn out to be a key determinant of the trading sentiment in the near-term. 

Traders on Wednesday will also be closely listening to remarks by various Fed officials, namely - Chicago Fed President Charles Evans and Dallas Fed President Rob Kaplan and Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester.

At the time of writing, DJIA was up over 100-points to 25,895 and the broader S&P 500 Index climbed nearly 6-points to 2,782. Meanwhile, tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index added around 20-points to 7,242.