Stocks gain at the start

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Stocks gained early Monday as a smattering of positive corporate news set the tone for the start of what traders hope will be a healthy earnings reporting period.

The 30-share Dow Jones Industrial Average (Charts) rose about 0.2 percent just after the opening bell, as did the broader S&P 500 (Charts). The tech-heavy Nasdaq (Charts) also gained about 0.2 percent.

In deal news, chemical giant Huntsman (Charts, Fortune 500) received a sweetened offer from buyout firm Apollo Management, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal.

In other corporate news, Boeing (Charts, Fortune 500) got a boost from the unveiling of its 787 Dreamliner in a Sunday ceremony in Everett, Wash. New orders announced over the weekend bring the company's order total for the plane to more than $100 billion. Shares rose about 2 percent.

And Ford Motor (Charts, Fortune 500) and power utility Southern California Edison, a unit ofEdison International (Charts, Fortune 500), are set to announce an alliance Monday aimed at clearing the way for a new generation of rechargeable electric cars.

Monday kicks off the second-quarter corporate earnings reporting period, and after the closing bell all eyes will be on Alcoa (Charts, Fortune 500), the first major company to report. Analysts surveyed by earnings tracker First Call forecast that profit fell 10 percent from year-earlier levels.

Treasury prices rose, lowering the yield on the 10-year note to 5.15 percent, down from the 5.18 percent level reached late Friday. Bond prices and yields move in opposite directions.

The dollar was little changed verses the euro and yen.

Oil prices fell in early trading, although it was up from earlier lows for the day. U.S. light crude slipped 11 cents to $72.70 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Positive sentiment was also felt overseas. European stocks rose at the open, and major Asian markets rallied.