Markets Right Now: US stocks open slightly higher

October 2, 2017 at 9:45a.m.

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks opened the first day of trading in the fourth quarter on a positive note, edging further into record territory.

Most industry sectors were higher in early trading Monday, led by gains in technology companies. Chipmaker Nvidia rose 1.2 percent and business software maker Oracle gained 1 percent.

Energy stocks lagged the market as the price of crude oil dropped nearly 3 percent. Cabot Oil & Gas gave up 1.3 percent.

Stocks in Spain fell 1.9 percent after a chaotic secession vote over the weekend in the Spanish region of Catalonia.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 rose 2 points, or 0.1 percent, to 2,521.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 29 points, or 0.1 percent, to 22,438. The Nasdaq rose 13 points, or 0.2 percent, to 6,509.