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U.S. stocks advance on M&A activity; Dow Jones up 0.23%

Published 12/13/2010, 10:05 AM
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Investing.com – U.S. stocks advanced after the open on Monday, as market sentiment was boosted by increased merger and acquisition activity and after China refrained from raising interest rates. 

During early U.S. trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.23%; the S&P 500 index climbed 0.33%, while the Nasdaq Composite index added 0.30%.

Shares in General Electric shed 0.24% after the U.S. conglomerate said it reached a deal to acquire British oilfield services company Wellstream Holdings for approximately USD 1.3 billion.

Meanwhile, shares in the world’s third-largest biotechnology firm Genzyme climbed 1.03% after pharmaceutical giant Sanofi-aventis extended its unsolicited USD 18.5 billion takeover bid for the biotech firm until January 21. 

Shares in the world’s third-largest personal-computer maker Dell fell 2.35% after it said it would purchase data-storage firm Compellent Technologies in a deal worth approximately USD 960 million. Shares in Compellent tumbled 2.79% following the news.

Elsewhere, shares in laboratory-equipment maker Dionex Corporation soared 20.24% after Thermo Fisher Scientific said it would acquire the company for approximately USD 2.1 billion. Shares in Thermo Fisher jumped 2.81% following the news.

U.S. listed shares of British consumer goods giant Reckitt Benckiser Group jumped 2.47% after it agreed to acquire Indian over-the-counter pharmaceutical firm Paras Pharmaceuticals for approximately USD 721 million.

Meanwhile, shares in Apple added 1.30% after Goldman Sachs said the company’s share price could climb by 34% in 2011 as the company’s profit margins expand.      

Elsewhere, shares in the commodity sector were broadly higher after China refrained from increasing its benchmark interest rate over the weekend, despite government data which showed China's consumer price index rose 5.1% in November, the fastest rise since July 2008. 

Shares in oil and gas giant Chevron leaped 1.21%, metal producer Freeport-McMoran Copper and Gold rallied 2.25%, while shares in the world’s largest gold producer Barrick Gold saw shares climb 1.18%.

Across the Atlantic, meanwhile, European stock markets were up. The EURO STOXX 50 climbed 0.70%, France’s CAC 40 jumped 1.04%, Germany's DAX gained 0.35%, while Britain's FTSE 100 added 0.87%.

Later in the day, European Central Bank president, Jean-Claude Trichet was to speak in Frankfurt.


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