Investing.com - U.S. stocks opened slightly lower on Monday, as markets were jittery ahead of U.S. economic reports to be released later in the trading session, although the Federal Reserve's latest policy statement still lent support.
During early U.S. trade, the Dow 30 slipped 0.15%, the S&P 500 eased 0.09%, while the NASDAQ Composite edged down 0.12%.
U.S. equities strengthened last week after the Fed gave no indication last week of when interest rates could start to rise. In addition, the Fed’s forecast of where interest rates might reach in the long term fell from 4% to 3.75%.
Sentiment found support earlier, after a report showed that China’s HSBC manufacturing purchasing managers’ index came in at 50.8 in June, up from a final reading of 49.4 in May. It was the first time the index has risen above the 50 level separating growth from contraction in six months.
The data eased fears over recent signs of a slowdown in the world’s second largest economy.
General Electric (NYSE:GE) edged up 0.18% after it signed the $17 billion purchase of Alstom (PARIS:ALSO)'s energy assets, marking its biggest acquisition ever, after the resolution of the French government’s last condition for the deal.
Among retailers, Lululemon Athletica (NASDAQ:LULU) surged 2.23% as it was reportedly working to create value for shareholders in part by improving the product line. A spokesperson on Sunday said the yoga-clothing maker’s board is "focused on further strengthening the company’s product engine and create value for Lululemon shareholders."
Separately, American Apparel (NYSE:APP) saw shares soar 5.49% after the company's largest outside shareholder, Swiss investment firm FiveT Capital, said it doesn't plan to support controversial Chief Executive Officer Dov Charney, who was ousted last week.
Micros Systems (NASDAQ:MCRS) added to gains, with shares rallying 3.18%, after Oracle (NYSE:ORCL), up 0.10%, offered to buy the maker of software for restaurants and hotels for $5.3 billion in cash.
Across the Atlantic, European stock markets were lower. The DJ Euro Stoxx 50 declined 0.56%, France’s CAC 40 slid 0.46%, Germany's DAX retreated 0.43%, while Britain's FTSE 100 shed 0.25%.
During the Asian trading session, Hong Kong's Hang Seng plummeted 1.68%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 added 0.13%.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to release preliminary data on manufacturing activity and private sector data on existing home sales.