US stocks close higher

New York, July 16 (IANS) U.S. stocks gained slightly as investors digested a slew of quarterly results and economic data.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 27.13 points, or 0.10 per cent, to 27,359.16 on Monday. The S&P 500 eked out 0.53 points, or 0.02 per cent, to 3,014.30. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 14.04 points, or 0.17 per cent, to 8,258.19, Xinhua reported.

Eight of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors closed higher, with utilities and consumer discretionary up 0.37 per cent and 0.34 per cent, respectively, outpacing the rest. Energy slid 0.93 per cent, the worst-performing group.

Citigroup on Monday reported diluted earnings of USD 1.95 per share in the second quarter, exceeding the USD 1.80 apiece estimate of analysts surveyed by Refinitiv. The stock, however, struggled to close down 0.08 per cent.

Other bank giants like JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America and Goldman Sachs are expected to report quarterly earnings later this week.

Despite Citigroup's solid second-quarter profits, investors were cautious on the upcoming earnings reports.