U.S. stocks pushed higher on Monday after shaking off an unsteady start, as a recovery in technology shares continued following sharp, AI-driven losses last week. The renewed buying lifted the Dow Jones Industrial Average above the 50,000 mark for the first time on record.
Investors are looking ahead to a busy week that includes delayed U.S. employment and inflation data, alongside another wave of quarterly corporate earnings.
By 11:00 ET (16:00 GMT), the Dow was up 0.1% at 50,179.85 points. The S&P 500 gained 0.5% to 6,966.23, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite rose 0.9% to 23,226.03.
Wall Street’s main indexes had already surged on Friday, staging a strong rebound after the recent tech sell-off. That rally helped the Dow reach its historic milestone, while both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq climbed roughly 2%.
Earnings season gathers pace
Last week’s rebound was driven largely by gains in chipmakers and AI-related stocks, which had been hit hardest during the earlier sell-off. Investors had rotated out of high-growth technology names amid concerns that rapid advances in artificial intelligence could disrupt software business models and squeeze profit margins.
Attention now turns to another busy stretch of earnings reports. Consumer giant Coca-Cola and automaker Ford Motor Company are among the major names due to report results this week.
On Monday, chipmaker ON Semiconductor was in focus. The company has previously issued fourth-quarter revenue and profit guidance broadly in line with expectations. Strong demand for its power-management solutions used in AI data centers has helped offset weaker electric vehicle demand in North America and Europe, which has weighed on spending for silicon carbide chips.
Other technology companies scheduled to report this week include Datadog, Spotify, Cisco, and Applied Materials.
Key U.S. data in focus
Beyond earnings, markets are also bracing for a series of important U.S. economic releases that were delayed by a brief government shutdown.
The closely watched January employment report is now due on Wednesday. Recent private-sector data showed weaker-than-expected job growth, raising questions about whether the labor market is beginning to cool after months of resilience.
On Friday, investors will turn their attention to the January consumer price index. The inflation data will be scrutinized for signs that price pressures are easing enough to give the Federal Reserve room to consider interest rate cuts later this year.
Gold rises, oil recovers
In commodities, gold prices advanced during European trading, with silver posting even stronger gains after precious metals experienced sharp swings last week. Volatility was driven by softer safe-haven demand, profit-taking and uncertainty around U.S. monetary policy.
Spot gold climbed 2% to $5,060.40 an ounce, while April gold futures rose 2.1% to $5,083.45. Spot silver surged 6% to $82.45, extending its rebound from lows near $60 seen last week.
Oil prices also moved higher after recent losses, as the United States and Iran signaled they will continue negotiations over Tehran’s nuclear programme. The talks eased concerns about escalating tensions in the Middle East.
Brent crude futures gained 1% to $68.74 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude added 1% to $64.16. Officials from Washington and Tehran said over the weekend that indirect talks would continue following what both sides described as constructive discussions in Oman, reducing fears of an imminent military conflict.
