By William Watts and Mark DeCambre, MarketWatch

Casino operator Caesars agrees to $8.6 billion buyout

Stock benchmarks on Monday attempted to gain altitude, extending last week's sharp gains, as investors look ahead to a meeting between President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping, while also tracking tensions between the U.S. and Iran.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 80 points, or 0.3%, to 26,795, while S&P 500 were less than a point at 2,950 and the Nasdaq Composite Index advanced edged 2 points, or 0.1%, lower to 8,026.

Stocks edged lower Friday but booked weekly gains that have the Dow on track for its best June performance since 1938 (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/the-dow-is-now-on-pace-for-its-best-june-return-in-80-years-but-the-fed-could-change-that-in-a-heartbeat-2019-06-18) and it is just 0.4% away from its all-time closing high set in October. The Dow rose 2.4% last week, while the S&P 500 logged a 2.2% gain. The Nasdaq saw a 3% weekly advance.

Need to Know:Why you should 'keep your eyes open' during this June rally (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/why-you-should-keep-your-eyes-open-during-this-june-rally-2019-06-24)

Trump and Xi are set to meet Friday and Saturday this week at a Group of 20 summit in Osaka, Japan, with investors looking for signs the leaders can work out a truce in a trade war that has raised concerns about global economic growth and corporate earnings.

Read:How the Trump-Xi trade meeting could set the stock-market tone for the summer (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/how-the-trump-xi-trade-meeting-could-set-the-stock-market-tone-for-the-summer-2019-06-22)

"All the attention will be on Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping and whether they can dial down the mood music on trade which of late has been set at death metal levels," said Russ Mould, director at AJ Bell Investment, in a note. "The outcome could help set the tone for the markets over the remainder of the summer."

Other geopolitical concerns also remain in focus, with the U.S. planning to impose new sanctions on Iran (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-plans-new-iran-sanctions-as-europe-tries-to-defuse-tensions-2019-06-24) despite a diplomatic push by European leaders to tone down tensions between Washington and Iran. The U.S. has blamed Iran for attacks on tankers near the Strait of Hormuz, while Iran last week shot down a U.S. drone. Trump on Friday said he canceled a retaliatory strike against Iran.

U.S. oil futures were higher Monday (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-oil-extends-last-weeks-surge-as-us-readies-additional-iran-sanctions-2019-06-24), while global benchmark Brent crude flipped between small gains and losses.

See:Global oil 'choke point' in focus after Trump calls off military strike against Iran: What you need to know (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/strait-of-hormuz-oil-choke-point-in-focus-as-iran-shoots-down-us-drone-amid-rising-tensions-2019-06-20)

On Wall Street's radar

Shares of Caesars Entertainment Corp.(CZR) jumped after the casino operator agreed to be bought out (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/caesars-stock-soars-after-eldorado-buyout-deal-values-casino-operator-at-about-87-billion-2019-06-24) by Eldorado Resorts Inc.(ERI) in a deal that values the casino operator at $8.6 billion. Eldorado shares were off 7% ahead of the opening bell.

Shares of Palatin Technologies Inc.(PTN) jumped 27% after the Food and Drug Administration granted marketing approval (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/palatins-stock-rockets-after-fda-ok-to-market-sexual-desire-disorder-treatment-2019-06-24) for a treatment for hypoactive sexual desire disorder, triggering a $60 million milestone payment.

Shares of auto maker Daimler AG(DAI.XE) fell more than 4% in German trading (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/daimler-issues-profit-warning-over-costly-diesel-issues-2019-06-24) after it warned that second-quarter profits would be high by increased charges surrounding problems with diesel vehicles from its Mercedes-Benz brand. Daimler also downgraded its full-year earnings forecast.

Daimler's performance weighed on Germany's DAX stock index , while European stocks traded mostly lower. The Stoxx 600 Europe Index was off 0.1%.

A weak reading for a closely followed German business sentiment index did little to soothe worries over the global economic outlook. The Ifo business-climate index fell to 97.4 in June (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/german-business-sentiment-continues-to-deteriorate-2019-06-24-54853020), its lowest since November 2014, from 97.9 in May. Economists had forecast a reading of 97.6.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

June 24, 2019 10:01 ET (14:01 GMT)