US open: Stocks off to a mixed start in Q4

dl new york city nyc ny us usa united states of america manhattan skyline city finance trading nyse dow jones sp dollar dollars usd federal reserve fed — New York CitySharecast photo / Josh White

Wall Street's main market gauges were trading on a mixed note at the start of the fourth quarter, with Treasuries unloved even after the US narrowly avoided a government shutdown over the weekend.

At 1615 BST, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was dipping 0.33% to 33,398.20, while the S&P 500 was little changed, up by 0.02% at 4,290.65.

The Nasdaq Composite on the other hand was adding 0.82% to 13,327.89.

In parallel, the yield on the benchmark 10-year US Treasury note was climbing by 10 basis points to 4.676%.

"It's been a disappointing start to the new quarter and the week for European markets with broad weakness across the board with the agreement of a deal to avert a US government shutdown serving to push US yields higher, along with the US dollar," said Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC Markets UK.

"The calculus here appears to be that this deal, while averting a crisis of confidence in US governance, shifts attention back to the resilience of the US economy, and the prospect of further rate hikes from the Federal Reserve."

Activity levels in America's factory sector continued to shrink last month, albeit at a slower pace than in August, the results of a closely followed survey revealed.

The Institute for Supply Management's manufacturing sector Purchasing Managers' Index increased from a reading of 47.6 for August to 49.0 in September (consensus: 47.7).

In equity markets, Coinbase shares were 3% higher as the crypto exchange said it had obtained a Major Payment Institution license from regulators in Singapore.

Dow Jones - Risers

Apple Inc. (AAPL) $173.38 1.27%
Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $510.20 1.19%
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $318.54 0.88%
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $54.07 0.58%
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $273.58 0.21%
International Business Machines Corporation (CDI) (IBM) $140.45 0.11%
Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $202.96 0.09%
Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $81.07 0.02%
Dowdupont Inc. (DWDP) $0.00 0.00%
Home Depot Inc. (HD) $302.16 0.00%