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NEW YORK - US stocks opened with small gains on Friday as investors digested a shock report showing the first decline in jobs for the US economy in four years, and a massive Microsoft takeover bid for Yahoo.
In the first trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average traded up 14.63 points (0.12 per cent) at 12,664.99, a day after a strong rally.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite added 7.28 points (0.31 per cent) to 2,397.14 while the Standard & Poor's 500 index climbed 3.18 points (0.23 per cent) to 1,381.73.
Investors were bombarded with news including data showing a loss of 17,000 jobs in January, the first decline in over four years for the US economy, and a blockbuster 44.6-billion-dollar (S$63.10 billion) bid by Microsoft for Yahoo that would shake up the tech space.
'Investors love mergers and acquisitions,' said Al Goldman, market strategist at AG Edwards.
'Also, foreign markets were up. If this deal restarts a bull, it would mean that the probable recession and all the other problems are fully discounted - we doubt it. We expect early strength to provide a shorting opportunity.' -- AFP
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