Stocks rose as chips led tech to a Nasdaq record: Monday recap

Stocks climbed on Monday, and the gains widened as the session went on. Technology did the heavy lifting. The Nasdaq Composite led the way, rising 2.26% to close at 27,122.09, a record. The S&P 500 gained 1.49% to finish at 7,764.70. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 366 points, or 0.71%, to close at 52,048.83. The buying was concentrated in the market’s largest technology names, and it carried the broad indexes higher with it. The advance followed a stretch of softer sessions, and it put the major benchmarks back on the front foot to open the week.

The split across sectors was clear. Communication services led, up 3.56%, with technology close behind at 2.77%. Consumer discretionary added 1.08%, and seven of the eleven major sectors finished higher. Energy went the other way. It fell 2.88%, the steepest drop of any sector, as crude prices slid through the day. Utilities and consumer staples also slipped, each off about a percent, and materials edged lower as well. The gains outside technology were modest by comparison, which is what left the Nasdaq so far ahead of the pack.

The engine was semiconductors. Advanced Micro Devices rose to a record and topped a $1 trillion market value for the first time, and the broader chip group rallied alongside it as the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index gained more than 3%. The move was part of a wider bid for artificial-intelligence names that lifted the largest technology and communication-services companies. Chipmakers have been among the year’s biggest winners, and Monday extended that run. Two forces outside the stock market added support. Oil prices fell, with Brent crude down about 2.6% on the day, taking some weight off inflation worries even as it dragged on energy shares. Treasury yields eased in step, and the 10-year note settled near 4.94%. Lower yields tend to help the long-duration growth stocks that dominate the Nasdaq, and on Monday they did.

Beneath the megacaps, the advance was narrower. The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies rose 0.52%, a fraction of the Nasdaq’s gain. The day’s strength ran through the largest names rather than the whole tape. That gap between the biggest stocks and everything else has been a recurring feature of this year’s rallies. The divergence showed up over a longer lens as well. Measured against the prior week, the S&P 500 held a gain of 1.66%, while the Dow slipped 0.90% and the Russell 2000 gave back 0.81%, a picture of a market still leaning on its technology leaders. Volatility stayed calm. The Cboe Volatility Index sat at 14.87, toward the low end of its recent range, a sign that traders saw little threat in the move.

The Nasdaq closed at a record. The rest of the week brings the usual run of economic data and corporate updates, and how far the chip-led enthusiasm carries from here is the open question the coming sessions will answer. Bond yields and oil prices, both of which shaped Monday’s tone, are worth watching too. For now, the tape belongs to the chipmakers.

This is a general-market summary for information only — not investment advice, and not a recommendation regarding any security.