Stocks Opened Higher to Kick Off 2015

U.S. stocks gained at the open on Friday, kicking off the first day of 2015, following weak manufacturing data. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately rose 126.71 points, or 0.71%, to 17,949.78. The S&P 500 gained 8.67 points, or 0.42%, to 2,067.57. The Nasdaq Composite climbed 23.19 points, or 0.49%, to 4,759.25.

The second and final reading of the Markit U.S. manufacturing index totaled 53.9 in December, down from 54.8 in November, the privately run firm said Friday.

The global economy ended 2014 in a fragile state as factories struggled to maintain growth across Europe and Asia, business surveys showed, adding to pressure on central banks to implement more stimulus.

European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said he can’t exclude the risk of deflation in the euro area, hinting that the likelihood of large-scale quantitative easing is increasing.

Brent crude LCOc1 reversed early gains Friday to fall to a fresh post-2009 low below $56 a barrel. Brent crude for February delivery was down $1.21 at $56.12 a barrel by 1323 GMT, almost 5 percent below the day’s high at $58.54.

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