Wall Street started the week notably lower as political tension with North Korea nears a boiling point. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped more than 50 points this afternoon. The S&P 500 fell over 0.3% at one point, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq was weighed down well over 1% as the tech sector suffered Monday.
North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong Ho told reporters on Monday that the U.S. had "declared war on our country." The official said North Korea also has the right to consider all counter measures. Those could include shooting down United States strategic bombers at any time, even when they are not yet inside the aerospace border of North Korea. Ri's comments come after U.S. warplanes flew near the reclusive country's coastline north of a demilitarized zone between North and South Korea on Saturday.
General Electric (GE) agreed to sell its industrial solutions unit to ABB Ltd. for $2.6 billion. The Swiss robotics and energy grid conglomerate will pay just under one times the unit's sales and about 12 times the unit's Ebitda earnings. It's GE's first big disposal under new CEO John Flannery, who has promised to cut costs and sell operations in a bid to reverse recent lackluster performance.
In other deal news, Genuine Parts (GPC) agreed to purchase European peer Alliance Automotive Group for $2 billion, including debt. The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter. It should deliver $2.3 billion in gross annual billings and is predicted to boost profit-per-share by 45 cents in fiscal 2018.
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