Stocks Opened Higher, Eyed on Trade Developments

U.S. stocks opened higher on Monday, after a Treasury official said there were no immediate plans to prevent Chinese companies from listing on domestic exchanges. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately rose 84.16 points, or 0.31%, to 26,904.41. The S&P 500 advanced 9.02 points, or 0.30%, to 2,970.81. The Nasdaq Composite gained 19.98 points, or 0.25%, to 7,959.61.

Global oil prices extended declines Monday, pulling U.S. crude closer to $55 per barrel, after reports suggest a return to full output capacity in Saudi Arabia. Brent crude contracts for November delivery were seen 85 cents lower, to trade at $61.06 per barrel. WTI contracts for the same month were marked 59 cents lower at $55.32 per barrel.

Bloomberg News, citing Treasury spokeswoman Monica Crowley, reported that the Trump administration isn’t contemplating blocking Chinese companies from “listing shares on U.S. stock exchanges at this time.” High-level talks between the U.S. and China are set to take place in Washington, D.C., in mid-October.

A new print overnight showed an unexpected increase in activity for China’s key manufacturing sector, with domestic consumption helping to offset weakness in foreign demand. The private Caixin/Markit’s manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) rose to a reading of 51.4 in September from 50.4 in August, holding above the neutral level of 50 to indicate expansion for a second consecutive month. Meanwhile, China’s government-issued manufacturing PMI rose to 49.8 in September from 49.5 in August, the National Bureau of Statistics said Monday, beating consensus economist expectations.