Stocks Opened Higher with Stimulus in Focus

U.S. stocks opened higher on Friday, as fiscal stimulus negotiations appeared to move towards a more comprehensive package. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately rose 80.99 points, or 0.28%, to 28,506.50. The S&P 500 added 17.40 points, or 0.50%, to 3,464.23. The Nasdaq Composite gained 89.50 points, or 0.78%, to 11,510.48.

Oil futures lost ground early Friday, as Hurricane Delta nears landfall on the U.S. Gulf Coast and a strike curtails a large chunk of Norway’s crude output. West Texas Intermediate crude for November delivery fell 41 cents, or 1%, to $40.78 a barrel. December Brent crude fell 39 cents, or 0.9%, to 42.95 a barrel.

Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) is reportedly in advanced talks for a takeover of peer chipmaker Xilinx (XLNX) in a deal that could be worth $30 billion, according to the Wall Street Journal.