Earnings, China growth boost US stocks

Wall Street markets fell in early trade Tuesday as investors dumped oilfield stocks as the oil price fell again and Johnson & Johnson tumbled on a fall in revenues.
After 40 minutes of trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 54.01 points (0.31 percent) from Friday's close at 17,457.56.
Markets were closed Monday for a holiday.
The broad-based S&P 500 lost 3.72 (0.18 percent) at 2,015.70, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite slipped 0.75 (0.02 percent) to 4,633.63.
The losses on Wall Street curtailed a global rally helped by China's 2014 growth report, which beat expectations at 7.3 percent. Oil prices lost more than $2 a barrel after the International Monetary Fund sharply cut its forecast for global economic growth this year to 3.5 percent, on the back of weaker momentum in nearly all leading economies but the United States.
The fall in crude prices took a toll on oil-linked shares. Oilfield service companies Baker Hughes and Halliburton both topped expectations for fourth-quarter profit. But Baker shares were down 2.2 percent and Halliburton lost 2.0 percent. Rival Schlumberger gave up 2.4 percent.
Also hit were big oil firms Chevron (-0.5 percent ) and ExxonMobil (-0.1 percent) on the Dow.
Dow member Johnson & Johnson beat profits expectations in the fourth quarter but revenues shrank 0.6 percent, sending its shares down 3.1 percent.
Delta Air Lines shares jumped 3.6 percent after it forecast a stronger 2015. The airline reported a fourth-quarter loss on large settlements for fuel price hedges.
Bond prices gained. The yield on the 10-year US Treasury fell to 1.79 percent from 1.83 percent Friday, while the 30-year dropped to 2.39 percent from 2.44 percent. Bond prices and yields move inversely.