US open: Major indices trade higher following Biden's exit from presidential race

(Sharecast News) - Major indices were in the green early on Monday after Joe Biden dropped out of the US presidential race over the weekend. As of 1530 BST, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.13% at 40,339.13, while the S&P 500 advanced 0.72% to 5,544.85 and the Nasdaq Composite came out the gate 1.18% stronger at 17,935.71.

The Dow opened 51.60 points higher on Monday, doing little to reclaim losses recorded in the previous session.

President Joe Biden's decision to drop out of the election race was in focus early on Monday, with him opting to endorse vice-president Kamala Harris for the Democratic Party's nomination. Both Biden's performance in last month's debate and a recent attempt on Donald Trump's life led to calls for the incumbent to bow out of the race in favour of Harris.

On the macro front, the Chicago Federal Reserve's national activity index decreased to +0.05 in June, down from an upwardly revised reading of +0.23 in May but ahead of market expectations for a reading of -0.09.

In the corporate space, Verizon posted quarterly revenues that came in short of estimates on the back of slower-than-anticipated handset upgrades.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com

Dow Jones - Risers

Nike Inc. (NKE) $73.69 1.36% Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $250.93 1.33% Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $442.41 1.21% Apple Inc. (AAPL) $226.54 0.99% Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $333.18 0.57% Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $168.42 0.27% Visa Inc. (V) $266.16 0.26% JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $210.31 0.25% Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $203.88 0.20% Walmart Inc. (WMT) $70.85 0.14%

Dow Jones - Fallers

Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $39.04 -6.19% Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $341.56 -1.75% Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $94.11 -1.70% Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $10.90 -1.04% Chevron Corp. (CVX) $157.63 -0.96% Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $64.68 -0.93% 3M Co. (MMM) $102.99 -0.90% American Express Co. (AXP) $240.49 -0.78% Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $46.96 -0.77% Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $561.74 -0.64%

S&P 500 - Risers

IQVIA Holdings Inc. (IQV) $234.00 4.20% Lam Research Corp. (LRCX) $953.56 3.97% KLA-Tencor Corp. (KLAC) $789.58 3.54% Applied Materials Inc. (AMAT) $217.41 3.40% Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $121.29 2.85% Charles Schwab Corp. (SCHW) $63.75 2.69% QUALCOMM Inc. (QCOM) $191.13 2.64% Intuitive Surgical Inc. (ISRG) $466.17 2.45% Western Digital Corp. (WDC) $71.50 2.41% Meta Platforms Inc. (META) $487.21 2.19%

S&P 500 - Fallers

Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $39.04 -6.19% Delta Airlines Inc. (DAL) $43.61 -4.03% Gap Inc. (GPS) $21.74 -4.02% AT&T Inc. (T) $18.36 -3.97% Starbucks Corp. (SBUX) $76.32 -3.72% Hanesbrands Inc. (HBI) $5.23 -3.15% Kohls Corp. (KSS) $20.40 -3.00% Air Products & Chemicals Inc. (APD) $255.17 -2.94% VF Corp. (VFC) $15.90 -2.90% Charter Communications Inc. (CHTR) $311.05 -2.89%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

Lam Research Corp. (LRCX) $953.56 3.97% Trip.com Group Limited (TCOM) $47.10 3.84% KLA-Tencor Corp. (KLAC) $789.58 3.54% Asml Holdings N.V. (ASML) $926.17 3.44% Applied Materials Inc. (AMAT) $217.41 3.40% Tesla Inc (TSLA) $247.29 3.38% Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $121.29 2.85% NetEase Inc. Ads (NTES) $93.89 2.78% QUALCOMM Inc. (QCOM) $191.13 2.64% Intuitive Surgical Inc. (ISRG) $466.17 2.45%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers

Starbucks Corp. (SBUX) $76.32 -3.72% Qurate Retail Inc. (QRTEA) $0.73 -3.70% Charter Communications Inc. (CHTR) $311.05 -2.89% Comcast Corp. (CMCSA) $38.93 -2.88% Align Technology Inc. (ALGN) $246.32 -2.10% American Airlines Group (AAL) $10.36 -2.08% Expedia Group Inc. (EXPE) $133.08 -2.06% Incyte Corp. (INCY) $64.61 -1.91% Monster Beverage Corp (MNST) $50.04 -1.67% Sirius XM Holdings Inc (SIRI) $3.35 -1.62%