WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Following the strong upward move seen last week, stocks have shown a lack of direction over the course of trading session on Monday. The major averages have spent the day bouncing back and forth across the unchanged line.
Currently, the major averages are posting modest gains. The S&P 500 is up 18.44 points or 0.3 percent at 7,417.37, the Nasdaq is up 37.62 points or 0.1 percent at 26,284.69 and the Dow is up 39.44 points or 0.1 percent at 49,648.60.
The choppy trading on Wall Street comes as traders express some uncertainty about the near-term outlook for the markets following recent strength, which has lifted the Nasdaq and S&P 500 to record highs.
While traders generally remain optimistic about the future for the markets, uncertainty about the conflict in the Middle East continues to weigh on their minds.
Traders also continue to keep an eye on the price of crude oil, with U.S. crude oil futures jump by more than 2 percent on the day.
Crude oil futures are surging after President Donald Trump rejected Iran's response to a U.S. proposal to end the months-long war, calling it 'totally unacceptable' in a post on Truth Social.
According to state media, Iran's counterproposal included demands for compensation over war damage and recognition of the Islamic Republic's sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz.
However, U.S. markets have recently been able to shrug off concerns about the impact of the Middle East conflict amid upbeat earnings news.
Reports on consumer price and producer prices may attract attention in the coming days, as traders analyze the effect the recent spike in oil prices has had on inflation.
Traders are also likely to keep an eye on reports on retail sales and industrial production as well as earnings news from the likes of Under Armour (UAA) and Cisco (CSCO).
Sector News
Gold stocks have moved sharply higher amid a modest increase by the price of the precious metal, with the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index spiking by 3.4 percent.
The surge by the price of crude oil is also contributing to significant strength among oil producer stocks, as reflected by the 2 percent jump by the Philadelphia Oil Service Index.
Semiconductor, pharmaceutical and computer hardware stocks are also seeing considerable strength, while airline and software stocks are showing notable moves to the downside.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in a mixed performance on Monday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index slid by 0.5 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index jumped by 1.1 percent and South Kore's Kospi surged 4.3 percent.
The major European markets have also turned mixed on the day. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is up by 0.4 percent, the German DAX Index is down by 0.2 percent and the French CAC 40 Index is down by 1 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries have moved to the downside, extending the see-saw movement seen over the past few sessions. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is up by 2.6 basis points to 4.390 percent.
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