Investing.com – Wall Street traded higher on Monday as a string of corporate movements and a positive read on the manufacturing sector boosted sentiment while investors prepared for one of the busiest weeks in the quarterly reporting season.
At 11:07AM ET (15:07GMT), the Dow Jones gained 97 points, or 0.53%, the S&P 500 rose 12 points, or 0.54% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite traded up 49 points, or 0.94%.
In M&A activity, AT&T Inc (NYSE:T) confirmed over the weekend that it agreed to buy Time Warner Inc (NYSE:TWX) for $85.4 billion in a move to create a telecom-media giant in what would be the largest acquisition this year. Both firms traded more than 1% lower however over concern that the deal would get regulatory approval.
B/E Aerospace Inc (NASDAQ:BEAV) soared more than 15% after aircraft component maker Rockwell Collins Inc (NYSE:COL) offered to buy the firm in a $6.4 billion deal.
TD Ameritrade Holding Corporation (NASDAQ:AMTD) was off more than 2% after the biggest discount brokerage by trade executions said Monday that it would buy Scottrade Financial Services in a cash-and-stock deal valued at $4 billion.
Monday also kicked off what would be one of the busiest weeks for the third quarter earnings season, with more than 160 S&P companies and 13 Dow components scheduled to report.
Of the 116 S&P companies that have reported earnings so far, 79% have beat analyst expectations, above the long-term average of 64%, according to data from Thomson Reuters.
In big moves on earnings Monday, T-Mobile US Inc (NASDAQ:TMUS) jumped more than 7% after reporting a better-than-expected quarterly profit and raising its forecast for customer additions for the year as heavy discounting helped attract subscribers.
On the downside, Kimberly-Clark Corporation (NYSE:KMB) slumped around 3% as the consumer products firm missed estimates.
Visa Inc (NYSE:V) will be in the spotlight with its own quarterly earnings after the market close Monday.
On the economic front, Markit’s preliminary manufacturing PMI for October unexpectedly rose with activity hitting a one-year peak.
“Manufacturing showed further signs of pulling out of the malaise seen earlier in the year, starting the fourth quarter on a solid footing,” Markit chief economist Chris Williamson commented on the report.
Meanwhile, the dollar traded slightly higher against other major currencies on Monday, as sustained expectations for the Federal Reserve (Fed) to hike rates this year continued to lend broad support to the greenback.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, gained 0.10% at 98.72, just off a fresh eight-month peak of 98.82 hit overnight.
That was despite the fact that St. Louis Fed president James Bullard repeated his view that “low interest rates are likely to continue to be the norm over the next two to three years.”
After the speech, Bullard indicated to reporters that December was the “most likely” time for a hike though he would support a move in November.
Markets increased odds for an end of the year increase to 74.2%, from the previous day’s 69.5%, according to Investing.com's Fed Rate Monitor Tool.
New York Fed chief William Dudley gave a speech on trading in the U.S. Treasury market, avoiding comments on the economy or monetary policy.
Later in the afternoon, Chicago Fed president Charles Evans and Fed governor Jerome Powell were scheduled for appearances.
Meanwhile, oil was under pressure on Monday as Iraqi oil minister Jabar Ali al-Luaibi said Baghdad wants to be exempt from any production cut the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) is aiming to achieve.
OPEC secretary general Mohammed Barkindo noted that there are signs that the market rebalance is underway with demand at healthy levels though the supply overhang remained a concern.
He noted that Russia’s cooperation in addressing challenges was crucial ahead of meeting scheduled in Vienna on October 28 and 29.
Russian oil minister Alexander Novak indicated that cooperation with OPEC was intensifying and that an output freeze or cut was the correct decision.
U.S. crude futures lost 1.08% to $50.30 by 11:14AM ET (15:14GMT), while Brent oil traded down 0.91% to $51.31.