WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - After an initial move to the downside, stocks have moved mostly higher over the course of the trading session on Monday. The major averages have climbed well off their early lows and firmly into positive territory.
Currently, the major averages are just off their highs of the session. The Dow is up 422.34 points or 0.9 percent at 49,314.81, the Nasdaq is up 152.69 points or 0.7 percent at 23,614.51 and the S&P 500 is up 35.25 points or 0.5 percent at 6,974.28.
The strength that has emerged on Wall Street comes following the release of a report from the Institute for Supply Management showing manufacturing activity in the U.S. unexpectedly expanded for the first time in 12 months in January.
The ISM said its manufacturing PMI jumped to 52.6 in January from 47.9 in December, with a reading above 50 indicating growth. Economists had expected the index to inch up to 48.5.
The upbeat economic data has helped traders shrug off lingering trade tensions along with renewed uncertainty over U.S. monetary policy.
However, traders seem reluctant to make more significant moves ahead of the release of the Labor Department's closely watched monthly jobs report on Friday.
The report, which is expected to show employment climbed by 70,000 jobs in January after rising by 50,000 jobs in December, could impact the outlook for interest rates.
Computer hardware stocks have shown a substantial move to the upside, with the NYSE Arca Computer Hardware Index spiking by 3.5 percent.
Significant strength is also visible among airline stocks, as reflected by the 3.2 percent surge by the NYSE Arca Airline Index.
Networking, semiconductor and retail stocks are also seeing considerable strength, while energy stocks have moved notably lower amid a steep drop by the price of crude oil.
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly lower during trading on Monday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index slumped by 1.3 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index tumbled by 2.5 percent.
Meanwhile, the major European markets have moved to the upside on the day. While the German DAX Index is up by 1.2 percent, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is up by 0.9 percent and the French CAC 40 Index is up by 0.8 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries have come under pressure after seeing initial strength. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is up by 3.4 basis points at 4.275 percent.
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