Wall Street opens lower as Fed member backs rate hike

New York - Wall Street stocks opened slightly lower on Friday after a US Federal Reserve policymaker added to signs the central bank is likely to raise interest rates later this year.

Several minutes into trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.7% at 18 352.26.

The broader S&P 500 was 0.8% lower at 2 164.90 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq was also 0.8% below Thursday's close at 5 219.25.

In a speech delivered on Friday morning, Eric Rosengren, president of the Boston Fed and a voting member of the Fed's policy committee this year, suggested a rate hike could be appropriate to avoid an overheating economy.

"If we want to ensure that we remain at full employment, gradual tightening is likely to be appropriate," he said.

The Fed is next due to meet on September 20 to September 21 to consider changes to US monetary policy.

Before the start of trading, the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq observed a moment of silence in memory of those killed in the attacks of September 11, 2001.