Stocks Opened Higher with Energy Shares in Focus

U.S. stocks opened with slight gains on Thursday, as oil prices continued to climb following a deal reached by the OPEC producers to cut production. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately rose 46.64 points, or 0.24%, to 19,170.22. The S&P 500 was off 0.97 point, or 0.04%, to 2,197.84. The Nasdaq Composite was down 19.51 points, or 0.37%, to 5,304.17.

Oil prices rose $1 a barrel on Thursday, building on big gains made after OPEC and Russia agreed to restrict production. Benchmark Brent crude for February rose $1.10 a barrel to a high of $52.94 and traded around $52.90, up $1.06 by 1315 GMT. U.S. light crude oil was up $1 a barrel at $50.44.

The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits rose more than expected last week, hitting their highest level in five months, but the underlying trend remained consistent with a strengthening labor market. Initial claims for state unemployment benefits increased 17,000 to a seasonally adjusted 268,000 for the week ended Nov. 26, the Labor Department said on Thursday.

General Motors Co. said Thursday its November sales jumped 10.2 percent to 252,644 vehicles, as all four of its brands posted strong gains over November 2015. Ford Motor Co. also posted a healthy increase of 5.2 percent — beating analysts expectations.

Parker Hannifin Corp., which makes motion-control technology, agreed to acquire filtration-products manufacturer Clarcor Inc. for about $4.3 billion, including the assumption of net debt.