Higher open as worker productivity rises

A strong 3.3% gain in worker productivity lifted the markets to a higher open with the Dow soaring 182 points to 16,241. Nasdaq gained 30 points to 4,666.

On the upside

WPCS International (Nasdaq: WPCS) received $3.0 million in new contracts in July and August.

BiondVax Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: BVXV) will collaborate with the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases to conduct a Phase 2 trial of BiondVax's flu vaccine Multimeric-001.

Unilife (Nasdaq: UNIS) engaged the services of Morgan Stanley to explore strategic alternatives to maximize shareholder value after a third party expressed interest in the company.

On the downside

Bloomberg reported that Baxalta (NYSE: BXLT) ended discussions to acquire Ariad Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: ARIA).

Ambarella (Nasdaq: AMBA) reported higher second quarter earnings and revenue but the company forecast disappointing current quarter revenue.

Shares of GoPro (Nasdaq: GPRO) tumbled after supplier Ambarella (Nasdaq: AMBA) said that wearable camera sales will drop.

In the broad market, advancing issues outpaced decliners by a margin of nearly 6 to 1 on the NYSE and by nearly 4 to 1 on Nasdaq. The broader S&P 500 climbed 17 points to 1,931. Bitcoin slipped $1 to $227.