Stocks Open Higher on Upbeat Employment News

ADP offered investors a hopeful employment picture by predicting a slowdown in the number of private sector jobs being cut. The Dow rose 50 points to 8461 while Nasdaq edged up 2 points to 1756.

On the upside

Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) may be in need of as much as $34 billion in new capital in order to shore up its balance sheet. Another report indicated that all banks may need only $75 billion in capital altogether. Shares of Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC) and Citigroup (NYSE: C) rose ahead of the results of the government's bank stress tests to be revealed tomorrow.

Shares of Zions Bankcorp (Nasdaq: ZION) surged on expectations that the regional bank will not need more capital infusion.

The Boston Globe, which is owned by The New York Times Company (NYSE: NYT), reached a tentative agreement with labor unions for concessions.

On the downside

Navigation device maker Garmin (Nasdaq: GRMN) posted a sharp drop in revenues and earnings due to a decline in discretionary spending by consumers.

Masimo (Nasdaq: MSI) reported higher revenues and earnings, but investors remained worried about demand for company's medical monitoring devices.

Shares of General Motors (NYSE: GM) fell sharply on worries that the issuance of new stock may significantly dilute existing shareholders.

In the broad market, advancing issues outpaced decliners by a margin of more than 2 to 1 on the NYSE and by nearly 2 to 1 on Nasdaq. The Russell 2000 which tracks small cap stocks added 2 points to 504.