US STOCKS-S&P 500 rises on upbeat corporate earnings; Travelers weighs on Dow

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* P&G, UTC gain after raising full-year forecasts
* S&P 500, Nasdaq hit one-month highs
* Biogen surges on reviving Alzheimer's drug
* Hasbro takes a hit from tariff threat
* Indexes up: Dow 0.04%, S&P 500 0.20%, Nasdaq 0.23%

(Updates to open)
By Shreyashi Sanyal
Oct 22 (Reuters) - The S&P 500 rose on Tuesday, bolstered by
gains in Biogen and upbeat earnings reports that eased concerns
over the fallout from the U.S.-China trade war, but the Dow
Jones index was pressured by a drop in McDonald's and Travelers.
The benchmark S&P 500 index was within striking distance of
a record high hit in July after trading above 3,000 points in
the previous session on signs of progress toward resolving the
spat between the world's two biggest economies.
Biogen's shares surged 36% after the drugmaker announced a
surprise plan to file for U.S. regulatory approval for its
Alzheimer's treatment.
The wider healthcare index .SPXHC clocked the biggest
increase among the major S&P 500 sectors.
Strong corporate earnings since last week have provided some
respite to equity markets, which were rattled over the past few
months by geopolitical worries and a slowing global economy.
"It's been a pretty good season so far, but I always caution
people the early announcers have a tendency to be better than
the later ones, so those numbers come down throughout the
season," said Randy Frederick, vice president of trading and
derivatives for Charles Schwab in Austin, Texas.
Of the 98 S&P 500 companies that have reported results so
far, over 80% of them topped Street estimates. Still, analysts
project the first earnings contraction since 2016 against the
backdrop of a slowing domestic economy and the prolonged trade
war.
Procter & Gamble Co PG.N gained 3.1%, lifting the consumer
staples sector .SPLRCS by 0.5%, after raising full-year
forecasts and beating Wall Street estimates. Harley-Davidson Inc HOG.N jumped 5% as it beat quarterly
profit expectations, while United Technologies Corp UTX.N
gained 0.7% on a forecast raise.
However, the Dow struggled for direction after a 2.8%
decline in the shares of McDonald's Corp MCD.N and a 7.3% drop
in Travelers Cos Inc TRV.N on poor results. The threat of tariffs on toys imported from China hit
toymaker Hasbro Inc's HAS.O quarterly profit as shipping and
warehousing costs soared. Its shares fell 14.6% and were the
biggest decliners among S&P 500 companies. At 10:08 a.m. ET the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI was
up 11.69 points, or 0.04%, at 26,839.33, while the S&P 500
.SPX was up 5.98 points, or 0.20%, at 3,012.70. The Nasdaq
Composite .IXIC was up 18.48 points, or 0.23%, at 8,181.47.
Among other stocks, Bristol-Myers Squibb Co BMY.N was
trading 6.8% higher on positive data from a late-stage lung
cancer trial. Shares of rival Merck & Co Inc MRK.N slipped
4.7%. Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.18-to-1 ratio
on the NYSE and for a 1.04-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.
The S&P index recorded 32 new 52-week highs and two new
lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 41 new highs and 35 new lows.