In early trading, Merck leads the Dow Jones Industrial Average with a 3.1% gain, while Procter & Gamble lags behind with a 1.4% loss. Year to date, Merck has gained 1.3% while Procter & Gamble is down 11.2%. Honeywell International is down 1.0% and Amazon.com is up 1.7% for the day.

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