NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks rose modestly at the open after an industry report showed U.S. manufacturing activity accelerated in February at its fastest pace in nearly four years, countering an earlier report that showed a drop in China's factory activity.
The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> rose 30.57 points or 0.19 percent, to 16,071.13, the S&P 500 <.SPX> gained 4.19 points or 0.23 percent, to 1,832.94 and the Nasdaq Composite <.IXIC> added 11.55 points or 0.27 percent, to 4,249.503.
(Reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak; Editing by Nick Zieminski)
