The stock market experienced a mostly upward trend on Monday, continuing the rally witnessed at the end of the previous week. Major averages have all moved up, however, the Dow's gain was modest in comparison.
At this time, the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 are slightly below their session peaks. The Nasdaq is up by 102.74 points or 0.6 percent at 16,259.07, the S&P 500 is up by 30.49 points or 0.6 percent at 5,158.28 and the Dow has increased 100.29 points or 0.3 percent to 38,775.97.
The upwards momentum of stocks continues, partly triggered by renewed optimism over the outlook of interest rates. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's relatively dovish remarks and weaker-than-expected job growth in April have mostly squashed short-term worries about a potential rate increase by the Fed.
Investors are now becoming increasingly confident about a rate cut in the coming months, with the possibility of lower rates by September now at 91.2 percent, as indicated by CME Group's FedWatch Tool.
Trading activity remains somewhat restrained as the absence of major U.S. economic data has forced some traders to sit out. The economic calendar for the week is relatively low-key, however, a preliminary reading on consumer sentiment in May and comments from various Fed officials may catch some attention.
Gold stocks have sharply risen on the day, causing a 2.2 percent surge in the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index. This rally in gold stocks comes alongside an increase in the price of the valuable metal, with gold for June delivery going up $22.80 to $2,331.40 an ounce.
The oil price increase is also causing significant strength among oil service stocks, exemplified by the Philadelphia Oil Service Index's 1.9 percent gain. Computer hardware stocks have also seen considerable growth, pushing the NYSE Arca Computer Hardware Index up by 1.7 percent.
Furthermore, oil producers, brokerage, and semiconductor stocks are showing notable vigor, going up alongside most other significant sectors.
In international trading, most Asia-Pacific stock markets moved up on Monday, while markets in Japan and South Korea were closed for holidays. China's Shanghai Composite Index rallied by 1.2 percent, and Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index went up by 0.6 percent.
Major European markets also experienced an upward trend for the day. Germany's DAX Index rose by 0.9 percent, while the French CAC 40 Index and U.K's FTSE 100 Index rose by 0.5 percent each.
In the bond market, treasuries have retracted near the stable line following initial strength. Consequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which inversely relates to its price, has gone up by less than a basis point at 4.506 percent.
