Stocks Opened Lower Following Global Markets

U.S. stocks opened lower on Monday followed weakness in global equity markets, breaking off a tight correlation with oil, which continued to build on recent gains. The Dow industrials lately fell 42.05 points, or 0.25%, to 16,964.72. The S&P 500 dropped 9.65 points, or 0.48%, to 1,990.34. The Nasdaq Composite shed 29.37 points, or 0.62%, to 4,687.65.

Brent crude hit a three-month high on Monday. Front-month Brent crude futures traded as high as $39.50, the highest since early December, and were trading at $39.30 a barrel at 1230 GMT, up 58 cents from their last settlement. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures fetched $36.53 a barrel, up 61 cents from the last close.

BEIJING China’s foreign exchange reserves fell $28.57 billion in February, slightly less than expected and easing from January’s slump, suggesting the central bank is scaling back its interventions to support the yuan as capital outflows slow.

Japan’s Softbank Group Corp (9984.T) plans to separate its domestic and overseas businesses and give them their own chief executives in its latest move to bolster shareholder value after a record $4.4 billion share buyback plan a month ago.

United Airlines CEO Oscar Munoz will resume his full-time duties on Monday, March 14 — just two months after he received a heart transplant. Despite those serious medical issues, the 57-year-old Munoz already had been “participating actively in all major corporate decisions and meeting frequently with employees, shareholders, and other stakeholders during his recovery.