U.S. Stocks Gain on Trade-Talks Optimism

By Caitlin Ostroff 

U.S. stocks opened higher on Monday after Chinese officials gestured they would step up protection of intellectual property, a lingering issue in the U.S.-China trade fight.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 85 points, or 0.3%, to 27961 shortly after the opening bell. The S&P 500 added 0.4% and the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.7%.

China's government called for speeding up the introduction on penalties and punitive action for infringement of patents and copyrights in a document released Sunday.

That step has cheered markets as better protection of intellectual property rights is among a host of issues that are being negotiated between the world's two largest economies. The U.S. has indicated it wants clearer assurances that China will follow through on the commitments it has made on the issue, and on others such as agricultural purchases, before negotiators will travel to Beijing for a new round of talks for a "phase one" trade deal.

"People think China is willing to make concessions," said Lewis Grant, a portfolio manager at Hermès Investment Management. "It shows a willingness on China's part to come to the table and keep talking."

Shares of Uber Technologies dropped 3% after the ride-sharing company lost its license to operate in London, one of its biggest markets. The firm, which has pledged to fight the regulator's decision, can continue to operate until the appeal process is completed.

A pickup in deal making activity also led to big swings in some stocks in offhours trading. Shares in Tiffany were buoyed 5.7% after LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton said it reached an agreement to buy the U.S. jeweler for more than $16 billion.

Shares in Medicines Co. rose over 22% after Switzerland's Novartis agreed to buy the cholesterol-drugmaker for nearly $10 billion.

Charles Schwab declined 0.6% after it agreed to buy smaller rival TD Ameritrade Holding in a stock-swap transaction valued at about $26 billion. Meanwhile, shares in eBay gained 3.5% after The Wall Street Journal reported that the online auctioneer was nearing a deal to sell its ticketing and classified-ads business StubHub to Viagogo for roughly $4 billion.

Elsewhere, the Shanghai Composite Index ended the day up 0.7%. The pan-continental Stoxx Europe 600 Index rose over 0.8%, led by gains in the basic resources and travel and leisure sectors.

Over in the U.K., the pound rose almost 0.3% against the U.S. dollar as the Conservative Party maintained a lead in weekend opinion polls after unveiling its manifesto for the Dec. 12 general elections. Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Sunday made a series of spending pledges and ruled out increases in income tax. The FTSE 100 index advanced about 1%.

The market is starting to anticipate that the Conservative Party, which has avoided taking any extreme positions in its manifesto, will win a majority in the elections, Mr. Grant said.

Write to Caitlin Ostroff at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

November 25, 2019 09:53 ET (14:53 GMT)

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