UKX FTSE 100 Index

By Caitlin Ostroff 

U.S. stocks edged higher Monday after Chinese officials gestured they would step up protection of intellectual property, a lingering issue in the U.S.-China trade fight.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 78 points, or 0.3%, to 27953 shortly after the opening bell. The S&P 500 added 0.3% and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.6%.

China's government called for speeding up the introduction on penalties and punitive action for infringement of patents and copyrights in a document released Sunday. The U.S. has indicated it wants clearer assurances that China will follow through on the commitments it has made on the issue, and on others such as agricultural purchases, before negotiators will travel to Beijing for a new round of talks for a "phase one" trade deal.

"People think China is willing to make concessions," said Lewis Grant, a portfolio manager at Hermès Investment Management. "It shows a willingness on China's part to come to the table and keep talking."

Doubts about the U.S. and China's ability to reach an agreement on trade have driven volatility throughout global markets this year, although major indexes have nevertheless managed to climb double-digit percentages in 2019.

Meanwhile, a flurry of deal-making activity drove swings among individual stocks.

Tiffany shares added 5.7% after LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton said it reached an agreement to buy the U.S. jeweler for more than $16 billion. LVMH shares gained 1.2% in Paris.

Charles Schwab declined 0.8% after it agreed to buy smaller rival TD Ameritrade Holding in a stock-swap transaction valued at about $26 billion. TD Ameritrade shares climbed 3.3%.

EBay shares jumped 3.8% after The Wall Street Journal reported the e-commerce company was nearing a deal to sell its StubHub ticketing business to a Switzerland-based firm, Viagogo.

Over in the U.K., the pound rose 0.3% against the U.S. dollar as the Conservative Party maintained a lead in weekend opinion polls after unveiling its manifesto for the Dec. 12 general elections. Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Sunday made a series of spending pledges and ruled out increases in income tax. The FTSE 100 index advanced about 1%.

The market is starting to anticipate that the Conservative Party, which has avoided taking any extreme positions in its manifesto, will win a majority in the elections, Hermès Investment Management's Mr. Grant said.

The pan-continental Stoxx Europe 600 Index rose 0.9%, led by gains in the basic resources and travel and leisure sectors.

Akane Otani contributed to this article

Write to Caitlin Ostroff at caitlin.ostroff@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

November 25, 2019 09:56 ET (14:56 GMT)

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