Stocks Opened Lower as Morgan Stanley Disappointed

U.S. stocks opened lower on Monday as investors digested disappointing earnings results form Morgan Stanley and weak data from China. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately fell 47.93 points, or 0.28%, to 17,168.04. The S&P 500 shed 5.55 points, or 0.27%, to 2,027.56. The Nasdaq Composite was down 6.43 points, or 0.13%, to 4,880.26.

Morgan Stanley (MS.N) reported a quarterly profit that fell far short of market expectations, capping a generally downbeat quarter for big U.S. banks after investors fled the bond, currency and commodity markets. Earnings applicable to common shareholders fell to $939 million, or 48 cents per share, from $1.63 billion, or 83 cents per share, a year earlier.

China’s economic growth slowed to 6.9% in the third quarter, slipping below 7% for the first time since 2009, government data showed Monday, adding to concerns that a slowdown in the Asian giant will continue to sap momentum from global growth.

Oil prices started the week in the red Monday. Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, fell 1% to $49.90 a barrel on London’s ICE Futures exchange. On the New York Mercantile Exchange, West Texas Intermediate futures were trading down 1% at $46.78 a barrel.

Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc. further lifted its full-year outlook after the drug company beat earnings expectations in the latest quarter. Overall, Valeant reported a profit of $49.5 million, or 14 cents a share, down from $275.4 billion, or 81 cents, a year earlier.

The California chip maker Microsemi Corporation said on Monday that it had offered to acquire its fellow chip maker PMC-Sierra in a cash-and-stock deal valued at about $2.4 billion.