Mid-Morning Market Update: Markets Open Higher; Amgen To Acquire Onyx For $10.4B

Following the market opening Monday, the Dow traded up 0.10 percent to 15,025.24 while the NASDAQ surged 0.32 percent to 3,669.41. The S&P also rose, gaining 0.19 percent to 1,666.59. Top Headline
Amgen AMGN announced its plans to buy Onyx Pharmaceuticals ONXX for $10.4 billion. Under terms of the deal, Amgen will buy Onyx for $125 per share in cash. Amgen projects the deal to complete at the beginning of the fourth quarter. Equities Trading UP
Qihoo 360 Technology Co QIHU shot up 8.64 percent to $79.45 after the company reported upbeat Q2 results. Shares of Onyx Pharmaceuticals ONXX got a boost, shooting up 5.74 percent to $123.67 after Amgen AMGN announced its plans to buy the company for $10.4 billion. Amgen AMGN was also up, gaining 5.26 percent to $111.15 after the company announced its plans to buy Onyx Pharmaceuticals ONXX for $125 per share. Analysts at Piper Jaffray upgraded Amgen from Neutral to Overweight. Equities Trading DOWN
Shares of Tyson Foods TSN were down 3.35 percent to $30.42 after analysts at Bank of America downgraded the stock from Buy to Neutral. CNH Global NV CNH shares tumbled 2.54 percent to $48.53 after the company announced the resignation of its Chief Financial Officer Pablo Di Si. Microsoft MSFT was down, falling 1.65 percent to $34.18. On Friday, the company reported that its CEO Ballmer will step down within the next 12 months. Nomura click here. reiterated its Buy rating on the stock. Commodities
In commodity news, oil traded down 0.25 percent to $106.15, while gold traded down 0.06 percent to $1,394.90. Silver traded up 1.59 percent Monday to $24.16, while copper rose 0.51 percent to $3.37. Eurozone
European shares were mostly lower today. The Spanish Ibex Index dropped 0.49 percent, while Italy's FTSE MIB Index tumbled 2.05%. Meanwhile, the German DAX gained 0.04 percent and the French CAC 40 dropped 0.22 percent. Economics
US durable-goods orders declined 7.3% in July, versus economists' expectations for a 4.9% fall. However, core durable-goods orders dropped 0.60% in the month. The Treasury is set to auction 4-week, 3- and 6-month bills.