U.S. stocks open lower on soft data

U.S. stocks opened lower Tuesday as the country's trade deficit widened more than expected in February.

Shortly after the opening bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 85.19 points, or 0.48 percent, to 17,651.81. The S&P 500 lost 10.83 points, or 0.52 percent, to 2,055.30. The Nasdaq Composite Index dipped 35.89 points, or 0.73 percent, to 4,855.91.

The U.S. Department of Commerce announced Tuesday that the goods and services deficit was 47.1 billion U.S. dollars in February, up 1.2 billion dollars from the revised January reading.

Dampening investor sentiment, in a speech at a German university on Tuesday, International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde called on the world's economies to boost growth, warning that risks to global growth are rising.

European equities traded sharply lower Tuesday amid Lagarde's remarks, with the German benchmark DAX index at the Frankfurt Stock Exchange tumbling more than 2 percent in early trading.

On Monday, U.S. stocks ticked down as falling oil prices and negative economic reports weighed on Wall Street. Endi