Stocks Open Weakly But Are Still Headed For A Monthly Gain

Stocks are opening lower on Wall Street Monday as declines in banks and health care stocks offset more gains for big technology companies. The S&P 500 was off 0.1% in the first few minutes of trading. It’s still on track to end August with its fifth monthly gain in a row and its biggest since April. It was the first day of trading after stock splits for Apple and Tesla, and also the first trading day for a revamped Dow Jones Industrial Average. Saleforce.com, Honeywell and Amgen are joining the blue chip club. Zoom Video Communications reports results after the closing bell.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story appears below.

Global stocks were mixed Monday after Wall Street turned in its fifth straight weekly gain and China’s manufacturing growth held steady.

Frankfurt and Tokyo advanced while London opened lower and Hong Kong declined.

U.S. stocks benefited from Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell’s announcement of a strategy change that could keep interest rates low. The change, dubbed “average inflation targeting,” could hold down rates even if inflation hits the Fed’s 2% target.

In early trading, the FTSE 100 in London lost 0.6% to 5,963.57 while Frankfurt’s DAX gained 0.7% to 13,122.16. The CAC 40 in France added 0.9% to 5,050.16.

On Wall Street, futures for the benchmark S&P 500 Index and the Dow Jones Industrial Average were up 0.3%.

On Friday, S&P 500 gained 0.7% while the Dow rallied 0.6%. The S&P gained 3.3% for the week.

Asian markets opened higher but all except Japan retreated, ending the day down.

Japanese markets were lifted by gains for five major trading companies after investor Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway announced it bought stakes of just over 5% in those companies.

Gains in Japanese factory output also helped lift sentiment.

The Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.8% after a survey showed manufacturing growth in August held steady at the previous month’s rate. It fell back later, ending the day down 0.2% at 3,395.68.

The Nikkei 225 in Tokyo advanced 1.1% to 23,139.76, rebounding from Friday’s heavy selling after Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s announcement that he was resigning.

The Hang Seng in Hong Kong slipped 0.7% to 25,254.00 while the Kospi in Seoul retreated 1.2% to 2,326.17. Sydney’s S&P-ASX 200 lost 0.2% to 6,060.60.

India’s Sensex lost 1.8% to 38,740.24. New Zealand and Southeast Asia markets retreated.

U.S. stocks benefited from Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell’s announcement of a strategy change that could keep interest rates low. The change, dubbed “average inflation targeting,” could hold down rates even if inflation hits the Fed’s 2% target.

Global stock markets have recovered most of this year’s losses despite rising coronavirus infection numbers in the United States, Brazil and some other countries.

Wall Street’s benchmark S&P 500 index is at a record high, propelled by big gains for technology stocks investors expect to do well despite the pandemic. But most stocks in the index still are down.

Benchmark U.S. crude oil gained 41 cents to $43.38 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract slipped 7 cents on Friday to settle at $42.97. Brent crude, the international standard, rose 63 cents to $46.44 per barrel in London.

The dollar advanced to 105.86 yen from Friday’s 105.55. The euro declined to $1.1897 from $1.1918.