Stocks Opened Flat after Final PMI Data

U.S. stocks opened flat on Monday following weak U.S. manufacturing PMI data. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately fell 22.01 points, or 0.13%, to 17,368.51. The S&P 500 added 0.94 point, or 0.05%, to 2,018.99. The Nasdaq Composite ticked up 18.34 points to 4,649.08.
The final reading of Markit’s U.S. manufacturing purchasing managers index was 55.9 in October, down from the flash reading of 56.2 and well below September’s 57.9. The final reading is the lowest since August. Any readings above 50 indicate expansion.

A PRIVATE gauge of activity in China’s manufacturing sector rose modestly last month after holding steady
in September, possibly relieving some concerns over the health of the economy. The HSBC China Manufacturing
Purchasing Managers’ Index, a measure of nationwide manufacturing activity, rose to a final reading of 50.4
last month from 50.2 in September, HSBC said.

Chrysler Group continued its string of big monthly sales increases, reporting an October jump of 21.7% over
the year-ago month, largely powered by Jeep Cherokee and Ram pickup.

HSBC’s (HSBA.L) profits fell short of expectations in the third quarter after the bank set aside $1.8 billion (1.13 billion British pounds) for misconduct settlements and compensation for customers, including a potential fine for rigging currency markets. HSBC’s third-quarter underlying earnings fell 12 percent from a year ago to $4.4 billion.

French advertising company Publicis Groupe SA on Monday said it has offered to buy U.S.-based Sapient for
$3.7 billion in cash as it seeks to speed up its transformation into a digital-technology company and
bounce back from its failed attempt to merge with rival Omnicom Group Inc.

Laboratory Corp. of America Holdings said it has agreed to buy Covance Inc. in a cash-and-stock deal worth
about $5.94 billion, as the health-care diagnostics company looks to expand with its target’s contract research business.