During Monday's trading, stocks modestly climbed higher, supplementing the significant gains noted in the previous week. All major averages experienced an uptick, though buyer interest seemed slightly restrained.
At this time, all major averages are positive, though below the day's peak. The Dow Jones has seen an increment of 45.40 points (0.1 percent) placing it at 39,558.24, while the Nasdaq has grown by 43.24 points (0.3 percent) bringing it to 16,384.11. The S&P 500 has also increased by 3.78 points (0.1 percent), resulting in a total of 5,226.46.
The restrained strength on Wall Street prevails as stocks continue to gain from recent upward momentum typified by the Dow's eight-day winning streak. Anticipation regarding potential interest rate reductions by the Federal Reserve has contributed to this strength. However, key inflation data set to be released this week could significantly sway the rate outlook.
On Tuesday and Wednesday, the Labor Department is expected to release reports on producer and consumer price inflation, respectively. It's predicted that producer prices rose by 0.3 percent in April after a 0.2 percent increase in March, and that the annual growth rate will marginally rise to 2.2 percent from 2.1 percent.
Consumer prices are projected to have risen by 0.4 percent in April, consistent with March's increase. Excluding food and energy prices, core consumer prices are anticipated to have risen by 0.3 percent in April after a 0.4 percent increase in March. The annual rate of consumer price growth is expected to have decreased to 3.4 percent in April from March's 3.4 percent. The rate of core consumer price growth for the year is expected to decrease from 3.8 percent to 3.6 percent.
Remarks by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell as well as reports on retail sales, industrial production, and housing starts could also draw attention this week.
In terms of individual stocks, GameStop (GME) shares have surged due to social media influencer "Roaring Kitty," who has posted for the first time in three years. His posts in 2021 stirred substantial activity in the video game retailer's stock. Shares of Squarespace (SQSP), the website building and hosting company, also soared, following the announcement of a $6.9 billion deal to go private.
The airline sector performed exceptionally well, led by American Airlines (AAL) and United Airlines (UAL) after HSBC initiated coverage of the stocks with Buy ratings. Biotechnology sector also saw a robust performance, with a significant spike in the shares of Incyte (INCY) following the biotech company's announcement of $2.0 billion share buyback plan. Mobile networking, tobacco and telecom sectors also experienced significant gains.
International trading saw mixed results, with Japan's Nikkei 225 falling by 0.1 percent and China's Shanghai Composite dropping by 0.2 percent. Hong Kong's Hang Seng, however, enjoyed a 0.8 percent rise.
In Europe, all major markets experienced a modest decline, with indexes in the UK, France, and Germany all falling by 0.2 percent. The bond market saw a rebound in treasury yields following a pullback last Friday, with the yield on the ten-year note falling by 3.5 basis points to 4.469 percent.