Stocks surged Monday as investors looked to the Federal Reserve’s next meeting and a slate of economic and corporate news due this week.
The Dow jumped 511 points, or 1.6%. The S&P 500 added 1.2% and the Nasdaq Composite rose 1.2%.
The S&P 500 index closed last week in correction territory, or more than 10% off its recent peak in July, after a slate of mixed earnings from Big Tech market heavyweights dragged stocks down, and strong economic data stoked fears that the economy isn’t cooling down enough from the Fed’s rate hikes.
The Fed reveals its next decision on interest rates on Wednesday. Traders seem all but certain that the Fed will pause rates at its next meeting, but will be looking for clues on where the central bank will take rates from there.
Chair Jerome Powell has previously indicated that soaring bond yields could mean the end of hikes, but has not taken additional raises off the table.
That same day, the Treasury Department releases its quarterly refunding statement that outlines its borrowing needs and the steps it plans to fulfill over the next three months.
Treasury said Monday it expects to borrow $776 billion during the final quarter of this year, $76 billion below the estimate announced in July. That’s the most the government has ever borrowed during a fourth quarter. The Treasury Department also said it expects to borrow $816 billion during the first quarter next year.
Corporate earnings are also top of mind for Wall Street. Apple shares rose 1.2% on Monday ahead of its quarterly results due after Thursday’s close, which will be closely watched after the carnage in tech stocks last week.
Other Big Tech stocks also rallied Monday. Alphabet shares rose 1.9%, Meta Platforms added 2%, Microsoft gained 2.3% and Amazon increased 3.9%.
McDonald’s shares also rose 1.7% on Monday after the fast-food chain beat top- and bottom-line expectations.
Other notable companies reporting results this week include Anheuser-Busch, Stellantis, CVS, Kraft Heinz, Pfizer, Eli Lilly and Starbucks.
Investors are looking to the October jobs report due Friday for cues on what the Fed’s final interest rate decision for the year could be. The labor market remained hot in September, adding 336,000 jobs in its biggest monthly increase since January and stoking fears that the central bank has more room to hike rates.
“The jobs number will probably influence long-term bond yields materially,” said Tom Graff, head of investments at Facet. “We could see a very large rally if the jobs number comes in soft.”
The 10-year Treasury yield, which surged above 5% last week, stayed below that level on Monday, at 4.88%.
Traders largely expect that the Fed won’t hike rates for the rest of the year, according to the CME FedWatch Tool.
With one full trading day of the month left, all three major indexes are on pace to end October lower.
As stocks settle after the trading day, levels might change slightly.
Read the full article here