US stocks open flat as oil prices hover near record peaks

Wall Street shares opened generally flat Wednesday as investors took a cautious stance as world oil prices hovered near record peaks close to 122 dollars a barrel.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 17.26 points (0.13 percent) to 13,003.57 just after trading commenced.

The technology-heavy Nasdaq composite was up a scant 0.15 points (0.01 percent) at 2,483.46 and the broad-market Standard & Poor's 500 index declined a slight 0.15 points (0.01 percent) to 1,418.11.

In a major bet on the WiMax wireless Internet technology, Sprint Nextel and Clearwire said they would combine their networks in a new company with investment backing from Internet giant Google, Intel and others.

The new company, to be named Clearwire, will deploy a nationwide WiMax network that will "dramatically enhance the speed and manner in which customers access all that the Internet has to offer at home, in the office and on the road," according to a joint statement.

On the economic front, the government reported that first quarter labor productivity -- which tracks workers' output -- accelerated 2.2 percent on an annualized basis compared with a revised 1.8 percent in the prior quarter.

(Agencies)