AI Stocks May Lead Early Upward Move On Wall Street

(RTTNews) - The major U.S. index futures are currently pointing to a higher open on Monday, with stocks likely to extend the upward move seen over the course of last Friday's session.

The markets may benefit from resumed strength among artificial intelligence stocks, which helped lead a pullback in the middle of last week.

Shares of AI darling and market leader Nvidia (NVDA) are jumping by 1.0 percent in pre-market trading, while shares of Oracle (ORCL) are climbing by 0.9 percent after moving sharply lower over the past several sessions.

Video game maker Electronic Arts (EA) is also surging by 5.4 percent in pre-market trading after announcing an agreement to be acquired by an investor consortium comprised of PIF, Silver Lake, and Affinity Partners in an all-cash transaction that values EA at approximately $55 billion.

Under the terms of the agreement, EA stockholders will receive $210 per share in cash, representing a 25 percent premium to the stock's unaffected share price of $168.32 at market close on Thursday, September 25th.

However, traders may be somewhat reluctant to make significant moves ahead of the release of the Labor Department's closely watched monthly jobs report on Friday.

The report, which is expected to show employment rose by 50,000 jobs in September after inching up by 22,000 jobs in August, could impact the outlook for interest rates.

Concerns about a potential U.S. government shutdown may also keep some traders on the sidelines ahead of a deadline at the end of the day on Tuesday.

After turning in a lackluster performance early in the session, stocks moved mostly higher over the course of the trading day on Friday. The major averages all moved to the upside, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq rejoining the Dow and the S&P 500 in positive territory after spending some time below the unchanged line.

The major averages all finished the day firmly in positive territory. The Dow advanced 299.97 points or 0.7 percent to 46,247.29, the S&P 500 climbed 38.98 points or 0.6 percent to 6,643.70 and the Nasdaq rose 99.37 points or 0.4 percent to 22,484.07.

Despite regaining ground after closing lower for three straight days, the major averages still posted losses for the week. The Nasdaq slid by 0.7 percent, while the S&P 500 and the Dow dipped by 0.3 percent and 0.2 percent, respectively.

The strength on Wall Street partly reflected a positive reaction to a closely watched Commerce Department report showing consumer prices increased in line with economist estimates in the month of August.

The Commerce Department said its personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index climbed by 0.3 percent in August after rising by 0.2 percent in July. The price growth matched expectations.

The annual rate of growth by the PCE price index ticked up to 2.7 percent in August from 2.6 percent in July, which was also in line with estimates.

Excluding food and energy prices, the core PCE price index rose by 0.2 percent in August, matching a revised increase in July as well as expectations.

The annual rate of growth by the core PCE price index came in at 2.9 percent in August, unchanged from July and in line with estimates.

The data helped increase confidence the Federal Reserve will continue lowering interest rates in the coming months.

Meanwhile, traders shrugged off the latest tariff news, with President Donald Trump announcing in a post on Truth Social that he will be imposing a 100 tariff on pharmaceuticals unless the company is building a manufacturing plant in the U.S.

Trump also announced a 25 percent tariff on heavy trucks and a 50 percent tariff on kitchen cabinets, bathroom vanities and associated products, with the new tariffs set to take effect October 1st.

Gold stocks moved sharply higher along with the price of the precious metal, driving the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index up by 2.5 percent to its best closing level in well over thirteen years.

An increase by the price of crude oil also contributed to considerable strength among oil service stocks, as reflected by the 1.6 percent gain posted by the Philadelphia Oil Service Index.

Interest rate-sensitive utilities and housing stocks also turned in strong performances on the day, moving notably higher along steel, brokerage and natural gas stocks.

Commodity, Currency Markets

Crude oil futures are tumbling $1.27 to $64.45 a barrel after climbing $0.74 to $65.72 a barrel last Friday. Meanwhile, after surging $37.90 to $3,809 an ounce in the previous session, gold futures are jumping $37.70 to $3,846.70 an ounce.

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar is trading at 148.70 yen versus the 147.93 yen it fetched at the close of New York trading on Friday. Against the euro, the dollar is trading at $1.1737 compared to last Friday's $1.1703.

Asia

Asian stocks rose broadly on Monday, as in-line U.S. inflation data reinforced Fed rate cut hopes and a rebound in Chinese industrial profits suggested the world's second-largest economy is stabilizing amid robust policy measures.

China's Shanghai Composite Index jumped 0.9 percent to 3,862.53 as data showed industrial profits in China returned to growth in August, rising an annual 20.4 percent after a 1.5 percent decline in July.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index surged 1.9 percent to 26,622.88 ahead of Chinese factory activity data due on Tuesday and the upcoming eight-day Golden Week holiday in China.

Japanese markets bucked the regional trend to close lower as numerous stocks went ex-dividend and investors awaited cues from a quarterly business sentiment survey by the Bank of Japan due Wednesday.

The Nikkei 225 Index slid 0.7 percent to 45,043.75, while the broader Topix Index settled 1.7 percent lower at 3,131.57.

Seoul stocks rallied after Wall Street broke its three-day losing streak on revived hopes for another Federal Reserve interest rate cut. The Kospi jumped 1.3 percent to 3,431.21 after a steep drop in the previous session.

Tech shares were among the biggest winners, with Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix rising 1.1 percent and 3.7 percent, respectively.

Australian markets hit a two-week high, with banks surging ahead of the Reserve Bank's interest rate decision on Tuesday. Gold miners also posted strong gains as bullion prices surged to another record high.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index advanced 0.9 percent to 8,862.80, while the broader All Ordinaries Index closed up 0.8 percent at 9,148.50.

Across the Tasman, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX-50 Index edged up by 0.2 percent to 13,132.56.

Europe

European stocks are turning in a mixed performance during trading on Monday amid concerns of a looming U.S. government shutdown.

On a light day on the economic front, U.K. mortgage approvals declined in August and consumer credit remained flat, data from the Bank of England showed.

The number of mortgage approvals fell by 500 to 64,700 in August. This was below the expected level of 65,000.

Secured lending dropped by GBP 0.2 billion to GBP 4.3 billion in August after falling by GBP 0.9 billion in July. Net borrowing of consumer credit by individuals remained flat at GBP 1.7 billion in August.

While the German DAX Index is down by 0.1 percent, the French CAC 40 Index is up by 0.3 percent and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index is up by 0.4 percent.

Higher metal prices have boosted miners, with Anglo American, Antofagasta and Glencore posting notable gains.

Pets At Home, a British retailer of pets, has also moved to the upside after naming a new CFO.

Drugmaker GSK has surged. CEO Emma Walmsley is stepping down after almost nine years and will be succeeded by its chief commercial officer, Luke Miels.

CMC Markets has also soared in London after extending its technology partnership with Australia's Westpac.

Meanwhile, Franco-Italian carmaker Stellantis has edged down slightly after appointing Joao Laranjo as its new Chief Financial Officer.

U.S. Economic News

The National Association of Realtors is scheduled to release its report on pending home sales in the month of August at 10 am ET. Pending home sales are expected to rise by 0.3 percent in August after falling by 0.4 percent in July.

At 1:30 pm ET, New York Federal Reserve President John Williams is due to participate in a conversation organized by the Rochester Institute of Technology.

St. Louis Federal Reserve President is also scheduled to speak before an event, "The Past, Present and Future of the Federal Reserve," at 1:30 pm ET.

At 6 pm ET, Atlanta Federal Reserve President Raphael Bostic is due to moderate a conversation on Atlanta's economy, air travel and leadership as part of the Atlanta Fed Leading Voices Series.