Stocks rose in afternoon trading on Wall Street on Monday as investors braced for a busy week of inflation updates.
The S&P 500 was up 0.4% by midday local time. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 134 points, or 0.4%, to 32,938 and the Nasdaq rose 0.5%.
Small-company stocks outperformed broader market gains in a sign investors were confident in the economy. The Russell 2000 rose 1.3%.
Retail and communications stocks were among some of the biggest gainers. Target was up 2.2% and Facebook parent company Meta was up 3.4%.
Technology stocks fell and tempered gains elsewhere in the market. Expensive stocks in the sector tend to push the market up or down with more weight.
Clean energy companies gained ground after the Senate approved Democrats’ big economic package for the election year, which includes funds to help combat climate change. First Solar rose 6.6%.
Bond yields fell. The 10-year Treasury yield fell to 2.78% from 2.83% on Friday.
Investors remain focused on inflation and its impact on businesses and consumers, along with the Federal Reserve’s efforts to fight higher prices. The central bank has been aggressively raising interest rates to curb economic growth and rein in record inflation. The Fed is expected to raise short-term interest rates by another 0.75 percentage point at its next meeting.
Wall Street is concerned that the Fed could put too much pressure on the economy and cause a recession. This week’s updates on inflation could provide more clarity on whether the Fed will remain aggressive.
The Labor Department will release its July report on consumer prices on Wednesday, followed by the July report on wholesale prices on Thursday.
This week’s inflation updates follow last week’s reports showing the labor market remains strong. While that’s good for the economy, it has complicated the job of the Federal Reserve, which may be forced to continue aggressive interest rate hikes aimed at cooling the economy and runaway inflation.
Investors are still reviewing the latest round of corporate earnings, which could also provide more insight into how hard inflation is hitting consumers and businesses. Nvidia fell 7.8% after warning investors that its second-quarter revenue will miss forecasts due to weaker gaming revenue.
Generic drugmaker Viatris rose 7% after beating Wall Street’s second-quarter profit and revenue forecasts.
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