NEW YORK, Sept. 14 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks opened higher on Tuesday as investors digested the newly-released consumer price index (CPI) report.

Shortly after the opening bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 80.17 points, or 0.23 percent, to 34,949.80. The S&P 500 increased 14.54 points, or 0.33 percent, to 4,483.27. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 60.89 points, or 0.40 percent, to 15,166.47.

Nine of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors advanced in morning trading, with energy and financials up 0.7 percent and 0.6 percent, respectively, outpacing the rest. However, the consumer staples and the communication services groups struggled.

The above market moves came after data showed a key inflation reading that was tamer than expected.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Tuesday that the country's CPI rose 0.3 percent in August for a 5.3-percent year-over-year gain, slightly below the 0.4-percent monthly consensus, but in line with the year-over-year consensus.

The core CPI, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, rose 0.1 percent in August for a 4.0-percent year-over-year increase, showed the report.

"There was cooling in price pressures in re-opening sectors like transportation and hotels that have been pushing up CPI the last few months, likely because demand weakened with the spread of the Delta variant," Chris Low and Will Compernolle, economists at FHN Financial, said Tuesday in a note.

"In fact, the same Delta variant causing prices to drop now will likely lead to price acceleration later, as global supply chains choke up again," they said, adding, "supply chain issues and labor shortages will keep price pressures in play throughout this year."

Inflation has been a focus on Wall Street in recent months, and it is also among the key economic indicators monitored by the U.S. Federal Reserve.

On Monday, U.S. stocks finished mixed, as a rally in the energy sector mainly offset the losses in the health care group.