Stocks Opened Higher, Tesla Motors in the Spotlight

U.S. stocks opened higher on Wednesday, amid uncertainty surrounding Thursday’s U.K. referendum on European Union membership. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately gained 46.53 points, or 0.26%, to 17,876.26. The S&P 500 rose 3.15 points, or 0.15%, to 2,092.05. The Nasdaq Composite was up 1.46 points, or 0.03%, to 4,845.22.

Tesla Motors Inc. (TSLA) was in the spotlight after the electric-car company headed by Elon Musk offered to buy SolarCity Corp. SCTY, +9.78% late Tuesday.

The International Monetary Fund said on Wednesday that the U.S. economy was “overall in good shape”, with growth set to accelerate from recent setbacks despite an overvalued dollar, but the Fund warned that too many Americans were living in poverty.

Oil rose further above $50 a barrel on Wednesday supported by an industry report that showed a large drop in U.S. crude inventories. Brent crude was up 34 cents at $50.96 a barrel at 1103 GMT. U.S. crude climbed 44 cents to $50.29.

U.S. crude inventories fell by 5.2 million barrels, the American Petroleum Institute (API) said on Tuesday, far more than analysts expected. Official stocks data is due later on Wednesday from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).