Stocks Plunged at Open after China’s Rout

U.S. stocks opened sharply lower on Monday, following a plunge in Chinese stocks triggered a global equity selloff. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately plunged 389.77 points, or 2.24%, to 17,035.26. The S&P 500 fell 43.53 points, or 2.13%, to 2,000.41. The Nasdaq Composite lost 124.63 points, or 2.49%, to 4,882.78.

China’s major stock exchanges tanked on the first trading day of the year, triggering a “circuit-breaker” that suspended equities trade nation-wide for the first time and putting at risk months of regulatory work to restore market stability.

The global economy finished last year on a fragile footing, with factory activity in China shrinking for the 10th month running in December while a pick-up in the euro zone was tepid, suggesting more policy stimulus may be in the pipeline.

General Motors Co. and ride-hailing company Lyft Inc. are forming an unprecedented partnership that could help them beat their rivals to the self-driving future. Lyft said Monday that GM invested $500 million in the company as part of a round of a $1 billion round of fund-raising.

Finland’s Nokia said on Monday it has gained control of French rival Alcatel-Lucent following its 15.6-billion-euro ($17 billion) all-share offer and the two telecom equipment makers would combine on Jan. 14. The French stock market authority said interim results showed Nokia would hold around 79 percent of Alcatel shares.

Oil prices rose on Monday after a breakdown in diplomatic ties between Saudi Arabia and Iran that some speculated could result in supply restrictions. Benchmark Brent crude futures were last up 72 cents on the day at $38.00 a barrel at 1323 GMT, off a session high at $38.50. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures were up 29 cents to $37.33 a barrel.