Stocks Opened Higher as Vaccine News Boosted Sentiment

U.S. stocks opened higher on Monday, as a steady flow of updates on progress toward effective coronavirus vaccines and treatments created a potential palisade against COVID-19. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately rose 226.22 points, or 0.77%, to 29,489.70. The S&P 500 climbed 23.77 points, or 0.67%, to 3,581.31. The Nasdaq Composite gained 72.03 points, or 0.61%, to 11,927.00.

Oil futures rose Monday, with support tied to continued progress on vaccines against COVID-19 even as the disease continues to rage anew in parts of the world. West Texas Intermediate crude for January delivery rose 61 cents, or 1.4%, to $43.03 a barrel. January Brent crude was up 74 cents, or 1.6%, to $45.70 a barrel.

The University of Oxford and AstraZeneca (AZN) said their vaccine was found to be as much as 90% effective in preventing infections without serious side effects in a large trial.