Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange.
NYSE
Stocks rose to start a big week of inflation data as investors bought up tech shares in the wake of recent weakness.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 33 points, or 0.1%. The S&P 500 gained about 0.3%, while the Nasdaq Composite rallied by 0.6%. A rise in Walt Disney shares helped lift the 30-stock index.
Tesla shares jumped more than 7% after Morgan Stanley upgraded the stock and predicted a significant rally ahead because of breakthroughs with its autonomous software. Qualcomm shares rose more than 3% after the semiconductor company said Monday it will supply Apple with 5G modems for smartphones through 2026.
The Technology Select Sector SPDR, made up of the tech shares in the S&P 500, was down 1.5% in August and another 1.6% this month through Friday. The ETF is up nearly 40% on the year.
Elsewhere, Disney shares rose more than 1.6% after CNBC’s David Faber reported Monday, citing sources, the media conglomerate and Charter Communications has reached a deal to end their cable blackout fight.
Bullish sentiment Monday was helped by a Wall Street Journal report on Sunday saying there was a consensus not to raise rates at next week’s meeting. The report also cited a policy shift in which members are seeing less urgency to add another rate hike later this year, as inflation data has been improving.
“It certainly helps that the market’s thinking that the Fed is probably done and maybe transitioning into a new strategy based on some of the articles we’ve seen this morning,” said U.S. Bank’s Rob Haworth, adding, “And that’s giving them some hope that we’re kind of past the toughest spots for corporate earnings.”
Investors are looking forward to key inflation data in the week ahead after a string of stronger-than-expected economic data points last week had renewed worries that the Federal Reserve could raise rates more than previously expected.
Wednesday and Thursday bring the latest consumer price index and producer price index readings, respectively. Investors are hoping for low readings, although both are expected to jump due to energy cost pressures.
Retail sales data is also expected Thursday and the University of Michigan’s Consumer Sentiment Survey will be released on Friday, which should give insight on how well spending could hold up for the rest of the year.
Apple will also hold its product event on Tuesday, dubbed “Wonderlust,” during which the company is widely anticipated to unveil the iPhone 15.