4:05pm: Nvidia notches new record
The Nasdaq finished Monday’s session on the front foot, adding 0.3% at 18,540 points, as chipmaker Nvidia booked a new record high, up 4.1% at $143.71.
The Dow Jones shed 0.8% at 42,931 points and the S&P 500 was down 0.2% at 5,853 points.
2:50pm: Could the S&P 500 hit 6,000 points soon?
The S&P 500 may be lower today, but Nigel Green, CEO of deVere Group, predicts that the S&P 500 will likely reach 6,000 by the end of the year.
“The momentum in the market is palpable with savvy investors positioning themselves to ride the wave," Green wrote.
“We are in the middle of a blockbuster earnings season, and the results are nothing short of spectacular.
“The heavyweights of corporate America are stepping up, delivering the kind of earnings reports of which investors only dream. Financials have led the charge, with banks kicking off the season on a high note, pushing the Dow to its own record highs alongside the S&P.”
Green highlighted another force pushing the S&P 500 higher – central banks.
"With inflation pressures cooling off, global monetary policy is moving into a more supportive phase. Major central banks are expected to continue to ease rates, with whispers of cuts growing louder by the day,” noted the deVere Group CEO.
“Lower rates are a dream for equity investors. With cheap money flowing, companies can borrow, invest, and grow faster, and stocks naturally benefit.
“For investors, this is the kind of environment you wait for – a once-in-a-cycle opportunity to capitalise on a wave of liquidity.”
1:55pm: Nasdaq pulls ahead
The Nasdaq had inched higher by Monday afternoon, bucking the day's trend.
The tech-laden index was about 0.1% above the flatline at 18,505 points.
Elsewhere, the Dow and the S&P continued to be underwater by 0.8% and 0.3% respectively.
11:50am: Logan warns of job market risks
Dallas Fed President Lorie Logan emphasized a gradual approach to lowering interest rates, citing risks of both a weakening job market and inflation reigniting.
Speaking at the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association, Logan noted that while the economy remains "strong and stable," uncertainties persist. She acknowledged that despite a stronger-than-expected September jobs report, downside risks to employment have grown. Logan also highlighted concerns about inflation potentially rising again, despite recent progress in cooling prices.
Her remarks follow a warmer-than-expected September inflation reading, raising doubts about the Fed’s rate-cutting plans.
10:55am: Risk-off mode
A "sparse" calendar is keeping risk appetite in check, IG's Chris Beauchamp believes.
“US earnings season has entered one of those odd fallow periods that sees still-young reporting period in a lull, bereft of major names," Beauchamp commented.
"Combined with an equally-empty calendar, this means that markets have struggled to make much headway in today’s session. Without such news to distract them, thoughts have turned back to the Middle East situation, leading to investors switching to risk-off mode.”
10am: Quiet start
US stocks got off to a quiet start to the week, with the S&P 500 and Dow Jones retreating slightly from their new record highs.
The Dow fell 0.2% and the S&P was down less than 0.1% in early trades, while the Nasdaq Composite was just above flat, inching up less than 0.05%.
Boeing was among the top risers in the S&P, up 4.9%.
An order from Emirates Airlines for five 777 freighters boosted Boeing, just days after the carrier's boss criticized the latest delays the new 777X passenger jet.
Elsewhere, Walt Disney Co (NYSE:DIS, ETR:WDP) has named its new chairman, Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) boss James Gorman, while it continues to search for a successor to CEO Bob Iger.
Gorman, who already sits on Disney’s board as chair of the succession planning committee, said picking a new CEO is "a critical priority" that he expects to be announced in "early 2026", which he said "will allow ample time for a successful transition before the conclusion of Bob Iger’s contract in December 2026".
7.40am: Course set for negative S&P start after last week's highs
Wall Street looked on course for a negative start to the week, with the Dow Jones and S&P 500 seen falling after notching up their latest records on Friday.
Futures had the Dow Jones down 0.2% and the S&P 500 off 0.3% ahead of Monday’s opening bell, with the Nasdaq also seen 0.6% lower.
This would come after the S&P 500 and Dow Jones notched up a sixth-straight week of gains and both closed out Friday at record highs.
Third quarter earnings season is set to bring updates from the likes of Boeing Co (NYSE:BA, ETR:BCO), General Motors Company (NYSE:GM), Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) and Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN) this week.
Finalto analyst Neil Wilson noted earnings season so far had provided “sufficient juice for the bulls” as companies were “generally beating a low bar”.
This was despite expected volatility as November’s presidential election drew closer, he said, as growing odds of a victory for Donald Trump further fuelled the likes of gold, sending the yellow metal to a fresh record high of US$2,738 on Monday.
“If we’re not really getting the kind of confirmation that the market is worth this elevated price, you know, then we could end up seeing a digestion of gains come fairly soon,” CFRA Research chief investment strategist Sam Stovall added.