US stocks have opened slightly higher after last week's records amid a fresh burst of merger and acquisition activity on Wall Street.
Five minutes into Monday trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 10.69 points (0.06 percent) to 16,934.97.
The S&P 500 gained 1.39 (0.07 percent) at 1,950.83.
The tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index rose 4.55 (0.11 percent) to 4,325.95.
Tyson Foods, the world's second-largest meat processor, won the bidding war for sausage and hot dog maker Hillshire Foods against rival Pilgrim's Pride with an offer worth US$8.6 billion (AU$9.30 billion).
Hillshire shares jumped 4.8 percent, while Tyson fell 1.4 percent and Pilgrim's lost 1.0 percent.
Antiviral drug developer Idenix Pharmaceuticals soared 232 per cent after Merck offered US$3.85 billion for the company, mainly interested in Idenix's hepatitis C drugs.
And Wall Street's king raider, Carl Icahn, sent shares of discount chain Family Dollar rising 13.4 percent after disclosing he had a more than nine per cent stake in the company.
AFP
source: newshub archive
