(MENAFN- AFP) General Motors jumped on a share buyback, while Apple rose ahead of the expected launch of its Apple Watch as US stocks climbed early Monday.
About 30 minutes into trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was at 17,929.51, up 72.73 points (0.41 percent).
The broad-based S&P 500 rose 4.09 (0.20 percent) to 2,075.35, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index added 13.66 (0.13 percent) at 4,934.83.
GM advanced 2.9 percent after announcing it would buy back $5 billion in shares in a deal with activist investor Harry Wilson, who agreed to drop his bid to join the board of directors.
Apple tacked on 0.8 percent ahead of an event in San Francisco, California, that is widely expected to launch a smartwatch in what would be Apple's first new product type since the iPad in 2010.
Aluminum maker Alcoa fell 4.8 percent on news it will buy RTI International Metals, a maker of titanium and speciality metal products, for $1.5 billion. Alcoa aims to build its presence in aerospace and some other sectors with higher profit margins. RTI jumped 40.2 percent.
Dow member McDonald's gained 0.7 percent despite reporting a 1.7 percent drop in comparable sales in February globally. The fast-food giant said it faced an "urgent need to evolve with today's consumers." Seve Easterbrook took over as chief executive March 1.
Whiting Petroleum, a big player in the Bakken shale formation in North Dakota, jumped 11.3 percent on reports it hired bankers to represent the company with prospective buyers.
Macerich, which owns and operates shopping malls in the western US, rose 6.2 percent after it was approached by commercial real estate giant Simon Property in an acquisition bid worth $22.4 billion, including debt. Simon rose 0.6 percent.
Bond prices rose. The yield on the 10-year US Treasury fell to 2.20 percent from 2.23 percent Friday, while the 30-year dropped to 2.79 percent from 2.83 percent. Bond prices and yields move inversely.
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