US stocks edge higher in early trading; Utilities lag other sectors

U.S. stocks are opening mostly higher as the market recovers from a two-day slide last week.

Utilities stocks lagged the rest of the market.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index edged up two points, or 0.1 percent, to 1,928 in the first few minutes of trading Monday.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 14 points, or 0.1 percent, to 16,509. The Nasdaq composite rose 18 points, or 0.4 percent, to 4,370.

European markets were mostly higher after Portugal's central bank said it would rescue the ailing bank Banco Espirito Santo, one of the country's biggest financial institutions.

Bond prices rose. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.48 percent.