WASHINGTON: Wall Street surged on Monday and oil prices settled around pre-Iran war levels, as investors eyed new developments in the AI and chipmaker sector ahead of corporate earnings.
All three major U.S. indexes ended the day higher. The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended the day up 0.29%, while the S&P 500 jumped 0.72% and the Nasdaq Composite climbed 1.12%.
MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe rose 0.41%. The global AI boom continued to dominate markets. South Korean chipmaker SK Hynix 000660.KS on Monday launched a U.S. share sale to raise 43 trillion won ($28.07 billion) and drew indications of interest for up to $7 billion from major investors.
And Broadcom announced it had expanded its partnership with Apple to develop and supply custom chips through 2031. Elsewhere, Microsoft joined the trend of tech layoffs, announcing it would eliminate around 4,800 jobs, roughly 2.1% of its global workforce.
Investors will be watching closely for how artificial intelligence-related companies are faring amid some fears about a bubble in the upcoming earnings season. Delta Air Lines and PepsiCo are the big U.S. names reporting this week. Samsung Electronics is set to make a splash on Tuesday as analysts expect an 18-fold increase in profit.
OIL STEADY
Oil prices were flat on Monday, as prices lingered around pre-Iran war levels. U.S. crude was steady at $68.69 a barrel and Brent fell just 0.03% to $72.10 per barrel.
While there were no new developments in the fractious U.S.-Iran peace talks, ships are passing through the Strait of Hormuz, with 160 vessels reported transiting from Monday to Saturday of last week. Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia slashed its official selling prices, and OPEC+ approved another production target increase starting in August.
Calming in oil prices looks to be extending some relief to the private sector, as the decline helped to slow the pace of increase in services inflation, according to new data from the Institute for Supply Management. The ISM reported that U.S. services sector activity dipped in June, but employment rebounded after contracting for three straight months.
U.S. President Donald Trump will attend a NATO meeting in Turkey this week, and Fed watchers will get another glimpse into how new Chairman Kevin Warsh steers the central bank when it releases Federal Open Market Committee minutes on Wednesday, the first of his tenure.
Analysts expect Warsh to limit clues as to future interest rate moves, but Fed Governor Christopher Waller defended forward guidance in remarks on Monday, saying it can be a "valuable tool" under the right circumstances.
The yield on benchmark U.S. 10-year notes fell 0.77 basis point to 4.471%, from 4.479% late on Thursday. In currency markets, the dollar index fell slightly, dipping 0.01% to 100.86, treading water in the wake of Thursday's weaker-than-expected June U.S. payrolls report. The dollar firmed 0.44% to 162.08 yen, not far from 40-year peaks of 162.84, as speculators test Japanese authorities' resolve on intervention.
In commodity markets, gold was 0.29% lower at $4,163.10 an ounce, after bouncing 2% last week. - Reuters
