NEW YORK - WALL Street stocks opened higher on Wednesday despite lingering economic concerns tied to further US job losses, as bargain-hunters scouted out discounted shares.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 19.54 points (0.17 per cent) at 11,401.80 shortly after the market opened for trading.

The Nasdaq composite rose 6.98 points (0.30 per cent) to 2,311.95 while the Standard & Poor?s 500 index gained 5.13 points (0.40 per cent) to 1,290.04. Economic worries continued, however, as the ADP Employment Report showed employers shed 79,000 private jobs during May and as oil prices traded over US$141 (S$191.42) a barrel close to recent record highs.

In technology, Microsoft is preparing a new bid for Yahoo's internet search business, possibly in partnership with other companies, the Wall Street Journal said. Yahoo shares climbed more than 9 per cent in trading before the opening bell.

General Motors shares fell 3.5 per cent to US$11.34 before the open after Merrill Lynch downgraded the stock, saying the automaker may need a capital infusion of US$15 billion (S$20.4 billion). Merrill said it could not rule out a bankruptcy for GM if the market continued to deteriorate. A spokesman for the carmaker was not immediately available.

In Europe, Deutsche Bank gained 5 per cent after saying it expects a profit in the second quarter, lifting other European banking shares.

Shares of several major US banks and brokerages inched up in trading before the bell.

'Deutsche's seeing a profit after a loss and saying it needs no capital has caused a bid in US financials,' said Mr Art Hogan, chief market analyst at Jefferies & Co in Boston.

'There may be some light at the end of the tunnel for the stocks.' 'Another thing that's important today is that we have relatively flat oil prices,' he added. 'Without a big move in oil, stocks may be able to follow the path of least resistance to the upside.'

S&P 500 futures were 3.3 points higher, above fair value, a mathematical formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the contract.

Shares of Family Dollar Stores, rose 10 per cent percent to $22.50 before the open after the discount store chain reported a higher-than-expected quarterly profit.

The Commerce Department releases data on May's factory orders at 1400 GMT (10.00 pm Singapore time). Orders are seen in a Reuters poll as rising 0.4 per cent.

UnitedHealth Group, the largest US health insurer by market value, cut its full-year earnings outlook and said it would pay more than US$900 million to settle lawsuits related to past stock options practices.

But its shares rose more than 5 per cent to US$27.26 before the bell. Analysts said the outlook and news on the legal settlement helped remove uncertainty about the company. -- AFP, REUTERS

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