Stocks rise with oil prices, consumer stocks gain ground

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NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks are rising Tuesday morning along with the price of oil, and consumer stocks are getting a lift from strong fourth-quarter results from companies like Procter & Gamble and handbag maker Coach.

KEEPING SCORE: The Dow Jones industrial average rose 231 points, or 1.5 percent, to 16,116 as of 10:37 a.m. Eastern time. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index climbed 20 points, or 1.1 percent, to 1,897. The Nasdaq composite added 24 points, or 0.5 percent, to 4,542.

ENERGY RISES: Energy stocks made early gains as the price of U.S. crude rose 75 cents, or 2.5 percent, to $31.09 a barrel in New York. It fell almost 6 percent Monday. Brent crude, a benchmark for international oils, gained 90 cents, or 3 percent, to $31.40 a barrel in London. Exxon Mobil picked up $1.57, or 2.1 percent, to $75.55.

IN THE BAG: The luxury handbag maker reported a greater profit than analysts had expected, and its stock rose $2.91, or 9.6 percent, to $33.26. Even with that big gain, it’s down 10 percent over the last 12 months.

3M: The maker of Post-it notes, industrial coatings and ceramics reported a greater profit and more revenue than analysts expected. 3M also backed its annual profit forecast. It rose $6.38, or 4.6 percent, to $143.9.

P&G PRICE GAINS: Consumer goods maker Procter & Gamble reported a larger profit in the fourth quarter as it raised prices and cut costs. The maker of Pantene shampoo, Crest toothpaste and Charmin toilet paper added $2.33, or 3 percent, to $79.18.

BANKED: Huntington Bancshares agreed to buy competitor FirstMerit Corp for $3.4 billion. The deal would create the largest bank in Ohio, and the companies would have about $100 billion in combined assets. FirstMerit added $2.52, or 16.4 percent, to $17.89 and Huntington lost 86 cents, or 9.8 percent, to $7.94.

BUMPY LANDING: Lockheed Martin said it will acquire the engineering company Leidos, combine it with its information systems and global solutions unit, and then separate that company so it can focus on its remaining aerospace and defense business. The stock shed $5.37, or 2.5 percent, to $205.64.

OVERSEAS: France’s CAC 40 fell 0.1 percent and Germany’s DAX lost 0.3 percent. Britain’s FTSE 100 slipped 0.4 percent. Asian markets were hammered by Monday’s slide in oil prices, which can signal weak demand. The Shanghai Composite dropped 6.4 percent to finish at 2,749.78, the lowest since December 2014. Japan’s Nikkei 225 lost 2.4 percent to 16,708.90.

BONDS, CURRENCIES: U.S government bond prices fell. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 2.02 percent from 2.01 percent. The euro was unchanged at $1.0837, and the dollar inched up to 118.56 yen from 118.48 late Monday.

By Marley Jay

AP Markets Writer

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