US open: Stocks gain at the open as investors shrug off Chinese trade concerns

US stocks were in the green at the open on Tuesday despite worries about trade relations with China intensifying after it emerged that Beijing was set to ask the World Trade Organization permission to impose sanctions on the US.

At 1520 BST, the Dow Jones was up 0.10% to 25,881.99, while the S&P 500 was up 0.07% to 2,879,05 and the Nasdaq Composite was 0.21% firmer at 7,940,41.

In trade news, the WTO's meeting agenda revealed that China will ask permission to impose sanctions on the US next week following Donald Trump's latest threat to impose tariffs on a further $267bn of Chinese goods, on top of the $200bn already planned.

"This news immediately sparked fears that the next round of trade war-escalation isn't far off," said Spreadex analyst Connor Campbell.

Elsewhere, Washington confirmed it was in the process of arranging a second meeting between Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

CMC Markets analyst David Madden said: "The announcement is seen as a step in the right direction for political stability in the region."

On the data front, the National Federation of Independent Business' small business optimism index rose to 108.8, a new record in the survey's 45-year history, from 107.9 in the month before. This was ahead of expectations for a reading of 108.2.

NFIB president and chief executive officer Juanita Duggan said: "Today's ground-breaking numbers are demonstrative of what I'm hearing every day from small business owners - that business is booming. As the tax and regulatory landscape changed, so did small business expectations and plans."

Pantheon Macroeconomics economist Ian Shepherdson said: "The record headline is eye-catching but the labour market components released last week meant that a clear increase was always likely."

Meanwhile, US job openings increased in July, according to the monthly JOLTS report.

Job openings, a measure of labour demand, rose 117,000 to 6.939m in July, the Labor Department said on Tuesday, topping economists forecasts of 6.646m.

Lastly, US wholesale inventories rose slightly less than expected in July as motor vehicle stocks fell further.

The Commerce Department said wholesale inventories increased 0.6% instead of gaining 0.7% as reported last month, while stocks at wholesalers edged up 0.1% in June.

In corporate news, Sonos dropped 16.05% in early trade after the company's first earnings release since its IPO revealed a drop in revenue and an earnings loss of 45 cents per share.

Elsewhere, Integrated Device Technology shot up 11.26% after the open as Japan's Renesas Electronics said it would buy the US chip maker in a $6.7bn deal.