US stocks mostly rise as oil prices jump
Wall Street stocks mostly advanced on Monday following weak US manufacturing data that added to concerns about slowing growth though easing worries about more interest rate hikes. The Dow Jones rose 1.0 percent to 33,601, the S&P 500 gained 0.4 percent to 4,124, and the Nasdaq shed 0.3 percent to 12,189. An industry survey of manufacturers by the Institute for Supply Management showed activity shrank more sharply than expected in March, notching a fifth consecutive month of contraction as producers moved to match slowing demand. The figures came as the OPEC+ group of crude exporters enacted a surprise production cut, which was seen as a step due to respond to a slowing macroeconomy. The yield on the 10-year US Treasury note declined, suggesting lowered odds for more Federal Reserve interest rate increases. Petroleum-linked companies rallied with oil prices. Chevron rose 4.2 percent while Halliburton surged 7.8 percent. Tesla fell 6.1 percent, however, as markets digested the latest production and sales figures for the high-flying electric carmaker. Global deliveries for Elon Musk's auto company were 422,875 in the first quarter, which was below the level of some estimates. Illumina fell 1.1 percent after the Federal Trade Commission ordered the life sciences company to divest Grail, charging that the $7.1 billion acquisition threatens competition in the cancer test market. Illumina said it will challenge the decision in federal court. (AFP)