New York -US stocks opened higher on Tuesday following solid manufacturing data from China and with momentum from Monday's market-friendly remarks by Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen.
Five minutes into trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 0.39% to 16 521.22.
The broad-based S&p 500 tacked on 0.43% to 1 880 while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index gained 0.71% to 4 227.
China said its official purchasing managers index of manufacturing activity came in at 50.3 for March, up slightly from February's eight-month low of 50.2. A figure above 50 points to growth.
Analysts also pointed to comments from Yellen on Monday that underlined that unemployment was still a big challenge for the economy and that the Fed will maintain its extraordinary measures until the jobless rate falls a lot more.