US stock markets were mixed in early trade Monday as opening gains were reversed by poor data on the manufacturing sector in November.
An hour into trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average had fallen 6.03 points (0.05 percent) at 13,019.55.
The S&P 500 edged higher 1.58 (0.11 percent) to 1,417.76, while the Nasdaq Composite added 9.93 (0.33 percent) at 3,020.17.
Markets fell after the Institute for Supply Management said its index on manufacturing activity for November fell into contraction territory, at 49.5, after two months of expansion, with businesses blaming the slow global economy and uncertainty from the fiscal cliff battle in Washington.
Traders, though, seemed generally inclined to shrug off more discord in the fiscal cliff deficit-reduction talks, and Patrick O'Hare of Briefing.com said buying was likely driven in part by fresh cash inflows into the market typical of the beginning of the month.
"With the positive finish at the end of November, it is understandable that the buying interest would carry over as December begins," he said.
News Corp gained 1.3 percent after announcing a new head of its troubled British newspaper arm News International and said it was ending its iPad-only news app, The Daily.
Las Vegas Sands Corp. was up 2.5 percent to $47.83 a week before it closes the books on a special $2.75 a share dividend announced to beat the expected dividend tax increase that will come out of the Washington "cliff" talks.
Ford gained 1.3 percent after announcing solid November sales, up six percent from a year earlier.
But General Motors, which announced only a three percent gain in November sales, lost 0.4 percent.
Bond prices fell. The 10-year US Treasury yield rose to 1.64 percent from 1.61 percent Friday, while the 30-year increased to 2.84 percent from 2.79 percent.
Bond prices and yields move inversely.
