Stocks Opened Higher, Lifted by Tech and Healthcare

U.S. stocks opened higher on Friday, lifted by technology and healthcare stocks, with investors assessing the turmoil in the Trump administration and impact of U.S. tariffs on global economy. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately rose 89.44 points, or 0.36%, to 24,963.10. The S&P 500 gained 9.86 points, or 0.36%, to 2,757.19. The Nasdaq Composite added 19.13 points, or 0.26%, to 7,500.87.

Crude-oil futures ticked slightly higher Friday as traders awaited a weekly tally of U.S. drilling rigs in a week that is seen the commodity lose ground on concerns over rising U.S. shale output. West Texas Intermediate crude for April delivery rose 14 cents, or 0.2%, to $61.33 a barrel, while May Brent crude was up 6 cents, or 0.1%, at $65.18 a barrel.

U.S. factory output jumped last month, led by big gains in the production of cars, computers and furniture. The Federal Reserve said Friday that manufacturing output rebounded 1.2 percent in February, the most since October and following three months of weak or negative readings. Factory production has increased a healthy 2.5 percent in the past year.

Construction on new houses fell 7% in February, but housing starts are still close to a post-recession high and builders show no sign of slowing down. Housing starts declined to an annual rate of 1.24 million last month from a revised 1.33 million in January.