Major US stock indices climbed on Monday after signs of easing geopolitical tensions in the Middle East sent crude oil prices sharply lower, boosting investor sentiment.
Market participants are now turning their attention to another busy week featuring corporate earnings and key economic releases. Investors will closely monitor the July US jobs report along with quarterly results from companies including Disney, McDonald’s and SpaceX.
At 11:44 a.m. ET the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 553.78 points, or 1.06%, to 53,038.81, the S&P 500 gained 91.12 points, or 1.22%, to 7,580.84. The Nasdaq Composite jumped 474.51 points, or 1.87%, to 25,848.37.
At the opening bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 274 points, or 0.52%, to 52,759.06. The S&P 500 added 15.1 points, or 0.20%, to 7,504.78, while the Nasdaq Composite rose 78.8 points, or 0.31%, to 25,452.66.
Investor confidence improved after US President Donald Trump refrained from launching fresh attacks on Iran over the weekend. Trump, who had warned of severe military action against Tehran last week, said on Saturday that the “parameters” of a potential agreement were taking shape. Iranian officials, however, denied that any negotiations with the United States were currently underway.
The prospect of reduced geopolitical risks weighed heavily on oil prices, with crude falling more than 5%.
Brent crude declined 4.9% to $83.65 a barrel, reflecting expectations that supply disruptions in the region may become less likely if diplomatic efforts progress.
“Obviously the market likes hearing that there may be some progress in the Persian Gulf,” said Steve Sosnick of Interactive Brokers, according to AFP.
“We’ve heard this news before and it hasn’t led to much, but the market always seems optimistic when they hear something of this type.”
US Treasury yields also retreated as demand for safe-haven assets eased. The benchmark 10-year Treasury yield slipped to 4.68% from 4.75% at Friday’s close.
Key Stock Movers
Among individual stocks, Amazon.com rose 5.3%, pushing the company’s market capitalisation above the $3 trillion mark for the first time.
Chip stocks, however, came under pressure. Shares of Micron Technology fell 4.9%, while Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) declined 2.7%.
Stocks of Alphabet and Meta Platforms rebounded 4.7% and 6.7%, respectively, from steep declines in July.
Shares of AI neocloud companies such as Nebius and CoreWeave rose over 13% each.
Marriott International equity declined 7.2% after the hotel operator forecast third quarter profit below expectations.
Bullion
Gold prices edged lower on Monday as investors weighed lingering uncertainty surrounding the conflict in the Middle East against persistent concerns over rising inflation.
By 10:12 a.m EDT (1412 GMT), spot gold fell 0.3% to $4,029.84 per ounce. USgold futures for August delivery dropped 0.5% to $4,029.00.
Among other metals, spot silver fell 0.8% to $57.18 per ounce, platinum slid 1.6% to $1,616.42 and palladium dropped 1.8% to $1,251.16.
