US open: Mixed start to trading in Holiday-shortened session

dl wall street st new york city nyc nyse stock exchange ny dow jones nasdaq sp finance us usa united states of america — Wall StreetSharecast photo / Josh White

Wall Street stocks were mixed early on Friday as traders returned from their Thanksgiving Day break.

As of 1510 GMT, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.29% at 35,374.88, while the S&P 500 advanced 0.02% to 4,557.44 and the Nasdaq Composite came out the gate 0.12% weaker at 14,249.38.

The Dow opened 101.85 points higher on Friday, extending gains (184.74) recorded on Wednesday after US Treasury yields hit their lowest level since late September.

The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note briefly fell to 4.369% on Wednesday, but later recovered and was last seen hovering at 4.474% at the opening bell on Friday. The drop marked a significant moment for the 10-year yield after having crossed the 5% mark in October for the first time in 16 years. The two-year note was changing hands at 4.933%, up roughly four basis points on its closing price on Wednesday.

Elsewhere, energy was still firmly in focus at the bell after the sector lost 0.1% on Wednesday on the back of an OPEC announcement that it had delayed a meeting on production cuts, originally scheduled for the weekend. West Texas Intermediate was down 1.25% at $76.14 a barrel, while Brent crude was 0.34% weaker at $81.14 a barrel.

On the macro front, a preliminary reading of Standard & Poor's November manufacturing OMI showed a drop to 49.4, down from 50 in October and below market expectations for a reading of 49.8. The reading marked the biggest decline seen in operating conditions at manufacturing firms iii three months. The services PMI, on the other hand, increased from 50.6 to 50.8, the highest reading seen in four months and above market expectations for a print of 50.4 - principally driven by growth in customer bases following successful marketing campaigns

No major corporate earnings were slated for release on Friday's holiday-shortened session.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com

Dow Jones - Risers

Chevron Corp. (CVX) $145.51 0.82%
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $151.95 0.75%
Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $177.35 0.72%
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $247.69 0.68%
Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $20.79 0.48%
Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $265.85 0.47%
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $37.52 0.45%
American Express Co. (AXP) $164.50 0.43%
Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $95.47 0.43%
Boeing Co. (BA) $220.76 0.39%