US stocks fluctuate as investors weigh stimulus outlook and political turmoil

• US stocks fluctuated between gains and losses on Wednesday as investors prepared for House Democrats to move to impeach Trump for the second time.
• Bitcoin is hovering around $35,000, a key technical level that could determine the cryptocurrency's longer-term direction.
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US stocks pointed edged higher on Wednesday as investors weighed ongoing stimulus efforts and prepared for House Democrats to move to impeach Trump for the second time.

Vice President Mike Pence ruled out invoking the 25th amendment to remove Trump based on accusations that he provoked a right-wing mob to storm the Capitol. Pence's decision sets the stage for Democrats to move ahead with impeaching Trump.

On the economic data front, the US consumer price index rose 0.4%, in line with the consensus estimate. The core CPI gauge, which excludes food and energy costs, increased 0.1% from the prior month after a 0.2% gain in November, according to a Labor Department report.

Philadelphia Fed President Patrick Harker will speak on the economy at 2 pm today and Federal Reserve Vice Chair Richard Clarida will speak on the monetary policy framework at 3pm.

Here's where US indexes stood shortly after the 9:30 a.m. ET open on Wednesday:

• S&P 500: 3,801.93, up 0.02%
• Dow Jones industrial average: 31,074.18, up 0.02% (5 points)
• Nasdaq composite: 13,086.57, up 0.11%

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Bitcoin is hovering around $35,000, a key technical level on the charts. A break above or below those levels could pave the way for the next burst towards record highs, or a more protracted decline, analysts say.

"The cryptocurrency market has come under fire in recent days, with Bitcoin and Ethereum both sinking lower as a wave of risk aversion sweeps across global financial markets. Although the longer-term outlook for both cryptocurrencies remains skewed to the topside, further losses look likely in the coming days," DailyFX strategist Daniel Moss said in a note.

Spot gold climbed as much as 0.4%, to $1,863 per ounce. The US dollar gained against all Group-of-10 peers currency peers and Treasury yields slipped.

Oil prices slid. West Texas Intermediate crude dropped as much as 0.9%, to $52.72 per barrel. Brent crude, oil's international standard, decreased 1.2, to $55.93 per barrel, at intraday lows.

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