US open: Stocks slip as investors digest disappointing manufacturing data

US stocks fell on Friday following the release of disappointing manufacturing figures and as investors took profits following two days of Fed-inspired gains.

At 1540 BST, the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 were down 0.2% and the Nasdaq was off 0.3%.

Meanwhile, oil prices were mixed as investors looked ahead to next week’s OPEC meeting in Algeria. West Texas Intermediate was down 0.3% to $46.17 a barrel and Brent crude was 0.2% higher at $47.76.

In corporate news, Twitter shares surged over 20% following a CNBC report that the company was considering the possibility of a sale.

Endo International rose sharply after appointing Paul V. Campanelli as president and chief executive officer, effective immediately.

Yahoo Inc lost ground after it confirmed that hackers had stolen the personal data from 500m accounts.

Elsewhere, Facebook was also in the red on a report suggesting that big ad buyers are unhappy that it overestimated the average viewing time for video ads on its platform.

Marriott International was weaker after it completed its $13bn acquisition of Starwood Hotels & Resorts in a deal that will create the world’s largest hotel company.

On the data front, preliminary figures from Markit showed activity in the US manufacturing sector eased more than expected in September.

Markit’s flash US manufacturing purchasing managers’ index fell to 51.4 from 52 in August, missing expectations for a reading of 51.9. A reading above 50 indicates expansion.

This was the weakest improvement in overall business conditions since June, with softer rates of output and new business growth the main factors weighing on the headline PMI in September.

Survey respondents suggested that relatively subdued economic conditions had acted as a brake on new order volumes, while there were also reports that the strong dollar had dampened export sales.