New York - US stocks pushed higher in opening trade on Monday despite continued tensions in Ukraine, with a new bid in the dollar-store fight stirring up retailer shares.
Ten minutes into trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.62% at 16 765.40.
The broad-based S&P 500 added 0.56% at 1 966.07, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite gained 0.58% to 4 490.80.
Family Dollar was in play again just weeks after signing a deal to be taken over by Dollar Tree. Rival Dollar General made a counter-offer worth $9.7bn, or $78.50 a share, $4 more than Family Dollar's.
Family Dollar shares gained 4.7% to $79.61, and Dollar General was up 9.3% to $62.78, while Dollar Tree fell 2.5% to $54.20.