NEW YORK - Stocks are higher in early trading as government officials move closer to a deal aimed at saving the crippled financial system.
But a credit market squeeze has intensified as doubts about the plan's effectiveness drive demand for very short-term, safe-haven assets including three-month Treasury bills.
Disappointing readings on employment and demand for big-ticket manufactured goods, as well as a sobering forecast from General Electric Co., are underscoring the broad effects of the more than year-old credit crisis.
The Dow Jones industrial average is up about 94 points at the 10,919 level.
