Stocks climb on earnings reports

U. S. stock sended slightly higher Monday and PayPal surged 5.4% on its first day of trading as a stand- alone company after its separation from EBay Inc.

Investors had their eye on company earnings news after weeks of fretting about Greece’s debt crisis and a steep slide in China’s stock market.

“We’re focused on earnings and they’re coming in better,” said Quincy Krosby, a market strategist at Prudential Financial. “Even though the estimates have been lowered, the companies are beating [ them] very nicely.”

Technology stocks rose more than the rest of the market. Gold slumped to its lowest level in five years, pulling mining stocks lower. A nearly three- week slump in oil prices deepened.

The DowJones industrial average gained 13.96 points, or 0.1%, to 18,100.41. The Standard& Poor’s 500 index added 1.64 points, or 0.1%, to 2,128.28. The Nasdaq composite rose 8.72, or 0.2%, to 5,218.86, eclipsing its previous record set Friday.

The three major indexes are up for the year. The S& P 500 is up 3.4% and the Dow is up 1.6%. The Nasdaq has gained10.2% this year.

PayPal gained $ 2.08 to $ 40.47. The payments system company officially split with EBay on Friday, 10 months after they announced that they were going their separate ways.

Toy maker Hasbro and oil and gas company Halliburton rose after reporting results thatwere better than analysts expected. Hasbro climbed $ 4.90, or 6.3%, to $ 83.15. Halliburton added 73 cents, or1.8%, to $ 40.72.

Newmont Mining slid 12.2% as gold prices slumped. The stock lost $ 2.53 to $ 18.16.

Seven of the 10 sectors in the S& P 500 moved higher, led by technology stocks. The sector is up 5.7% this year. Energy stocks fell the most, extending the sector’s losses for the year to10.5%.

In energy futures trading, the price of oil continued its nearly three- week slump as it fell with other commodities amid concerns about weakening demand in China.

Benchmark U. S. crude dipped below$ 50 for the first time since April and closed down74 cents to $ 50.15 a barrel in New York. Brent crude, a benchmark for international oils used by many U. S. refineries, fell 45 cents to close at $ 56.65 in London.

Precious and industrial metals futures ended lower. Gold slumped $ 25.10 to $ 1,106.80 an ounce. Gold is trading at a five- year low as its appeal as a safe haven asset and a hedge against inflation have waned.

U. S. government bond prices fell. The yield on the 10- yearTreasury note rose to 2.38% from 2.35% late Friday.