NEW YORK, March 18 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks ended higher on Monday, driven by large-cap growth stocks like Alphabet and Tesla, which contributed to a recovery in the technology-focused Nasdaq.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 75.66 points, or 0.20 percent, to 38,790.43. The S&P 500 added 32.33 points, or 0.63 percent, to 5,149.42. The Nasdaq Composite Index increased 130.27 points, or 0.82 percent, to 16,103.45.
Nine of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors ended in green, with communication services and consumer staples leading the gainers by going up 2.95 percent and 0.82 percent, respectively. Meanwhile, health and real estate led the laggards by dropping 0.02 percent respectively.
Piper Sandler analysts noted on Monday that following a successful year in 2023, the technology and communication services sectors of the S&P 500 are once again leading in performance in 2024. However, they mentioned that the consumer-discretionary sector has lagged behind in performance this year.
This week is expected to be eventful for central bank news, particularly in the United States, where all eyes are on the Federal Reserve. The Fed's monetary policy committee is scheduled to meet on Tuesday and Wednesday, with the anticipation that it will maintain interest rates at their current levels.
"This is a market that really wants to hold onto the momentum trade but what's really weighing on investors' minds is what happens with the Fed this week," said Lindsey Bell, chief strategist at 248 Ventures in Charlotte. "The market is sitting comfortably with the first cut coming in June or July but not entirely confident it'll be the case. The question is if it gets pushed out further."
In terms of individual stocks on Monday, Alphabet's shares surged following a report indicating potential use of Google's Gemini artificial intelligence (AI) engine in Apple's iPhone. Nvidia's stock also rose as the company prepared to introduce its latest chips at an event dubbed "AI Woodstock."
