The major indexes finished Monday with a mixed performance, coming off a strong previous week as investors brace themselves for a packed schedule of corporate earnings and inflation reports.
The S&P 500 dipped slightly by 0.06% to close at 7,807.24, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average outperformed, climbing 195.60 points, or 0.38%, to 51,850.55. This marked the third consecutive winning day for the 30-stock index. On the flip side, the Nasdaq Composite lagged behind, dropping 0.44% to end at 27,245.90.
The Nasdaq’s decline was largely driven by a 3.9% tumble in Micron Technology shares. The semiconductor giant faced pressure as investors evaluated growing competition from China’s CXMT, which has showcased advancements in chip architecture. Meanwhile, the Dow got a boost from a 2% surge in Salesforce shares following a double upgrade from Bank of America.
In the commodities market, oil prices climbed after former President Donald Trump announced an energy ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine over the weekend. However, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy quickly countered that Moscow had already breached the agreement. West Texas Intermediate crude rose 2.06% to settle at $93.74 a barrel, while Brent crude gained 1.84% to close at $106.65. Adding to the geopolitical friction, Trump stated he is considering joining Saudi Arabia in military actions against Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen following a deadly airport attack in Riyadh, heightening fears of wider regional conflict.
Despite these tensions, Wall Street wrapped up a winning week. The Dow and S&P 500 logged their second gains in three weeks, while the Nasdaq extended its streak to four consecutive weeks of advances, helped by a rally in tech stocks.
Looking ahead, the third-quarter earnings season officially kicks into high gear. Major financial institutions, including Bank of America, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, Morgan Stanley, and Wells Fargo, are all scheduled to release their results this week. Investors are hoping strong earnings will help the market power through the Middle East turmoil. According to FactSet’s John Butters, S&P 500 companies are projected to report an impressive 29.6% earnings growth for the quarter, marking the fourth consecutive period of growth exceeding 25%, fueled by the ongoing AI data center expansion.
In addition to bank results, the September consumer price index and producer price index are set to drop on Wednesday and Thursday, respectively. Tim Holland, chief investment officer at Orion, noted that corporate earnings will dominate the conversation. He suggested that even if inflation figures come in hotter than expected, the market will likely view them as insufficient to derail the Federal Reserve, which is widely anticipated to hold interest rates steady at its upcoming meeting.
Holland emphasized that the AI capital expenditure build-out remains the central pillar of the current market momentum. This week also marks the four-year anniversary of the S&P 500’s bull run, which began after the index hit a closing low of 3,577.03 in October 2022. Since then, the index has more than doubled in value.
