Escalating violence in Libya weighed the markets down to a lower open with the Dow losing 57 points to 12,334. Nasdaq dropped 31 points to 2802.
On the upside
Mentor Graphics (Nasdaq: MENT) received an all cash offer valued at approximately $1.9 billion from activist investor Carl Icahn.
Bristish chip maker CSR will pay a premium of approximately $679 million in stock to acquire digital solutions firm Zoran (Nasdaq: ZRAN).
