WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Following the relatively lackluster performance seen during last Friday's sessions, stocks continued to show a lack of conviction during trading on Monday but once again managed to end the day mostly higher.
The major averages ended the day off their best levels but still at new record closing highs. The tech-heavy Nasdaq climbed 114.19 points or 0.4 percent to 27,086.81, the S&P 500 rose 19.90 points or 0.3 percent to 7,599.96 and the Dow inched up 46.42 points or 0.1 percent to 51,078.88.
The higher close on Wall Street partly reflected strength among tech stocks after Nvidia (NVDA) unveiled a new superchip RTX Spark in collaboration with Microsoft (MSFT) that the company said reinvents Windows PCs for the era of personal AI agents.
'The PC is being reinvented,' said NVIDIA founder and CEO Jensen Huang. 'For forty years, you launched apps. Click. Type. With RTX Spark and Microsoft Windows, you ask - and the PC does the work.'
Shares of Nvidia spiked by 6.3 percent, while shares of Microsoft jumped by 2.3 percent. PC makers Dell (DELL) and HP (HPQ) also saw significant strength.
Buying interest was somewhat subdued, however, as the price of crude oil surged in reaction to the latest developments regarding the conflict in the Middle East.
Crude oil prices surged after Iran's state-affiliated news outlet Tasnim said Tehran will halt peace talks with the U.S. and completely close the Strait of Hormuz in response to Israeli attacks in Lebanon.
The report came after U.S. Central Command said it conducted 'self-defense strikes' on Iranian radar and command and control sites for drones in Iran over the weekend.
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps also said it targeted an airbase allegedly used in a U.S. attack on a telecommunications tower on Sirik Island in southern Hormozgan province.
However, crude oil prices pulled back off their highs after President Donald Trump said talks with Iran are continuing at a 'rapid pace.'
Trump also said he had a 'very productive call' with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and claimed 'there will be no Troops going to Beirut, and any Troops that are on their way, have already been turned back.'
'Likewise, through highly placed Representatives, I had a very good call with Hezbollah, and they agreed that all shooting will stop,' he added. 'That Israel will not attack them, and they will not attack Israel.'
On the U.S. economic front, the Institute for Supply Management released a report showing manufacturing activity in the U.S. expanded for the fifth consecutive month in May.
The ISM said its manufacturing PMI rose to 54.0 in May from 52.7 in April, with a reading above 50 indicating growth. Economists had expected the index to inch up to 53.1.
With the bigger than expected increase, the manufacturing PMI reached its highest level since hitting 55.9 in May 2022.
Sector News
Software and computer hardware stocks saw substantial strength on the day, with the Dow Jones U.S. Software Index and the NYSE Arca Computer Hardware Index spiking by 4.2 percent and 3.9 percent, respectively.
The sharp increase by the price of crude oil also contributed to significant strength among oil producer stocks, as reflected by the 3 percent jump by the NYSE Arca Oil Index.
Networking and semiconductor stocks also saw notable strength, while considerable weakness was visible among gold, utilities and retail stocks.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in a mixed performance during trading on Monday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index climbed by 0.9 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index fell by 0.3 percent.
Meanwhile, the major European markets all moved to the downside on the day. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index slid by 0.7 percent, the French CAC 40 Index declined by 0.5 percent and the German DAX Index decreased by 0.4 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries regained ground after coming under pressure early in the session but remained in the red. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, rose 2.4 basis points to 4.477 percent after reaching a high of 4.516 percent.
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