US stocks rise slightly as higher gold mining stocks offset weak McDonald’s earnings

NEW YORK, N.Y. – The stock market is edging higher at midday as higher gold prices are boosting mining companies.

A big week for corporate results began Monday with McDonald’s falling short of Wall Street’s expectations. But gold broke above the $1,300 mark for the first time in a month, and gave mining stocks a lift. The price of gold rose $38.60, or 3 per cent, to $1,331 an ounce.

The Dow Jones industrial average was up 14 points to 15,558 at midday. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose three points to 1,695. The Nasdaq composite was up 10 points to 3,598.

McDonald’s says economic uncertainty for its customers weighed on results and it warned of a tough year ahead. The company’s stock price was down 3 per cent.