US stocks opened slightly higher on Wednesday as investors struggled for direction after commentary on Tuesday from Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell about inflation rates and the state of the economy triggered a market selloff. 

Powell sent markets lower and 2-year Treasury yields to 15-year highs on Tuesday as he opened the door to larger rate hikes during testimony before the Senate Banking Committee. 

Richmond Fed President Thomas Barkin added to concerns on Wednesday morning. High inflation means the Federal Reserve still has more work to do, he said at an event in South Carolina.

Chair Powell is expected to testify Wednesday at 10 a.m. ET before the House Financial Services Committee, potentially triggering a new wave of market volatility. 

The bond market, meanwhile, is flashing a warning sign that generally predicts an incoming recession: The yield on the two-year US Treasury moved higher than the 10-year by the most in more than 40 years. That’s a signal that investors are more nervous about the immediate future than the longer term.

Tensions between the United States and China also continue to rage on, worrying investors. China announced a major government overhaul that aims to boost its technological self-reliance as a tech war with the United States intensifies.

The ADP employment report, meanwhile, highlighted a still-resilient US labor market — 242,000 jobs were added in February. That’s much higher than estimates of 200,000 and more than double January’s revised 119,000 jobs added.

Investors are waiting for US job opening numbers for January at 10 a.m. ET and government payroll numbers on Friday. 

In corporate news, shares of Occidental Petroleum were up 3.3% after filings showed that Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway purchased more shares of the energy company this week. Shares of Stitch Fix, meanwhile, fell nearly 10% after the clothing company missed estimates on fourth-quarter earnings.

The Dow was up 36 points, or 0.1%, on Wednesday morning.

The S&P 500 grew by 0.1%.

The Nasdaq Composite was 0.2% higher.