US stocks continue to climb; key payrolls release looms large

Investing.com-- U.S. stocks rose Monday, continuing recent gains as investors awaited more cues on interest rates from a slew of Federal Reserve officials and key labor market readings this holiday-shortened week.

At 09:35 ET (13:35 GMT), Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 240 points, or 0.6%, S&P 500 rose 14 points, or 0.3%, while NASDAQ Composite rose 22 points, or 0.1%.

The main indices have started the new week--shortened by Thursday's Independence Day holiday--on a positive note, adding to the gains seen in the previous quarter.

For the second quarter, the S&P 500 and NASDAQ Composite added 3.9% and 8.3%, respectively, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 1.7%. The Nasdaq notched its third positive quarter in a row for the first time since a five-quarter streak ending in 2021, with the major tech stocks leading the way on enthusiasm for all things linked with artificial intelligence.

Payrolls, Fed comments in focus

The focus this week will be on Friday's release of key nonfarm payrolls data for June. The reading is set to provide more insight into the labor market, whose resilience has also been a key point of contention for the Fed in cutting rates.

The PCE price index, a key inflation gauge for the Fed, showed later last week that inflation was slowing very gradually, meaning there still remains a great deal of uncertainty over when the U.S. central bank will start cutting interest rates.

Ahead of the nonfarm payrolls data, a report on Tuesday is expected to show that job openings declined again in May.

Wednesday sees the release of the minutes of the Fed’s June meeting, and will be parsed for the central bank’s view of the economic outlook and the factors influencing the monetary policy outlook.

Additionally, there are a slew of Fed officials due to speak this week, chiefly Chairman Jerome Powell, who is set to appear at the European Central Bank’s annual forum in Portugal on Tuesday.

Boeing agrees purchase of Spirit Aerosystems

Among individual stocks, Boeing (NYSE:BA) stock rose 2.2% after the planemaker agreed to buy Spirit Aerosystems (NYSE:SPR), up 3.5%, for $4.7 billion, ending a lengthy pursuit that was complicated by contracts Spirit had with Boeing's main rival Airbus (EPA:AIR).

Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA) stock fell 1.2%, consolidating after gains of close to 150% so far this year. However, Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) still sees upside, lifting its price target on the semiconductor, calling it “the most compelling narrative in the AI semis space”.

Chewy (NYSE:CHWY) stock rose 7.6% after Keith Gill, the stock influencer known as "Roaring Kitty", disclosed a 6.6% stake in the pet products retailer, while GameStop (NYSE:GME) stock fell 6.9% after Gill was accused of securities fraud in a class-action lawsuit concerning the video game retailer.

Crude boosted by rise in Caixin manufacturing PMI

Crude prices edged higher Monday, helped by a private survey showing Chinese manufacturing activity grew more than expected in June, offering hope this important economy was steadily recovering.

By 09:35 ET, the U.S. crude futures (WTI) traded 0.8% higher at $82.19 per barrel, while the Brent contract climbed 0.9% to $85.74 per barrel.

The Caixin Manufacturing PMI rose 51.8 in June, compared to expectations for a reading of 51.5, and the prior month’s reading of 51.7.

The reading contrasts with government PMI data released on Sunday, which showed China’s manufacturing sector shrank for a second consecutive month in June.

China is the largest crude importer in the world, and a recovery in its manufacturing sector points to increasing demand in the second half of the year.

(Ambar Warrick contributed to this article.)

This article first appeared in Investing.com