The Dow Jones industrial average began the week with a moderate advance today as strong financial sector earnings and General Motor Corp.'s new labor agreement offset a sharp rise in oil prices.

News that GM reached a tentative deal with its union assuaged investors who feared the automaker's fortunes would worsen, while upbeat quarterly results at Citigroup Inc. led a group of positive reports from other financial services firms.

That helped Wall Street cope with rising crude oil, which added nearly $1 a barrel as a strengthening Tropical Storm Wilma posed yet another threat to the Gulf Coast. A barrel of light crude climbed 82 cents on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Broader stock indicators were modestly higher. The Standard & Poor's 500 index slipped 1.19, or 0.10 percent, to 1,185.38, and the Nasdaq composite index slipped 9, or 0.44 percent, to 2,055.83.

With little economic data due Monday, investors were relying on the first wave of third-quarter earnings reports as a gauge on the economy and the efforts to recover from disruptions caused by hurricanes Katrina and Rita in the Gulf of Mexico. Wall Street will pay particular attention to fourth-quarter and 2006 forecasts for further signs of recovery -- or trouble.

General Motors surged $2.01 to $29.99 after the company said it reached a deal with the United Auto Workers to cut healthcare costs. However, the struggling automaker posted a loss of $2.89 per share for the third quarter, far greater than Wall Street had expected.

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