Stocks battle to stay afloat

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Stocks turned mixed Monday, with the Dow struggling to keep gains, but the other major gauges slipping, as traders tried to stay positive ahead of what they hope will be a healthy earnings reporting period.

The 30-stock Dow Jones industrial average (up 34.23 to 13,645.91, Charts) rose about 0.1 percent just after the opening bell. But the broader S&P 500 (down 0.91 to 1,529.53, Charts) and the tech-heavy Nasdaq (down 2.07 to 2,664.44, Charts) each lost about 0.2 percent.

Earlier in the session the Dow was about 40 points away from its all-time trading high, while the S&P was about 20 points away. The Nasdaq closed at a fresh 6-1/2 year high Friday.

In corporate news, Boeing (up $2.10 to $100.98, 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 of Edison International (Charts, Fortune 500), are set to announce an alliance Monday aimed at clearing the way for a new generation of rechargeable electric cars.

On the deal front, chemical giant Huntsman (up $0.25 to $28.25, Charts, Fortune 500) received a sweetened offer from buyout firm Apollo Management, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal. Huntsman shares rose about 1 percent.

Positive sentiment was also felt overseas. European stocks rose in midday trade, and major Asian markets rallied.

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 5.16 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 erased earlier losses, with U.S. light crude up 3 cents to $72.84 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Market breadth was positive. Winners edged out losers on the New York Stock Exchange as 208 million shares changed hands. On the Nasdaq, advancers beat decliners by a narrow margin on volume of 347 million shares.