United States stocks upward thrust after snapping weekly dropping streak as investors brace for inflation data

Kayra Reven

US stocks rose Monday and were on course for a 4th straight win. Wall Street’s major indexes last week broke a string of weekly losses.
US stocks rose Monday as investors rode upside momentum after the market ended a run of weekly losses, with all eyes on key inflation due out on Tuesday.

All three of Wall Street’s major equity indexes were on course to rise for a fourth consecutive session. The indexes last week marked their first weekly advance after three weeks of declines. Stocks found some relief as Treasury yields eased and the US dollar continued to pull back from 20-year highs.

During Monday’s session, Disney will be in focus after activist investor Dan Loeb signaled he’s pulling back from his call for the entertainment heavyweight to spin off ESPN. Investors will also watch chip stocks following a Reuters report the US government plans to broaden curbs on US shipments to China of semiconductors used for artificial intelligence and chipmaking tools.

August inflation data due Tuesday will be a key economic report for financial markets, with figures on consumer prices due before the Federal Reserve meets on September 20-21. Investors have been pricing in expectations that Chair Jerome Powell and his colleagues will raise the Fed Funds rate by 75 basis points for a third consecutive meeting as inflation still stands well above their 2% target.

“It seems policymakers were keen to reinforce their hawkish position ahead of the blackout period – which we’re now in – potentially with an eye on that data point. They’ll have no opportunity to react to the release ahead of the meeting and there was perhaps a feeling that a softer reading could see market expectations slip which they clearly want to avoid,” said Craig Erlam, senior market analyst at Oanda, in a note.

Around the markets, investing legend Jeremy Grantham warns the S&P 500 could plunge another 26% – and say he’s shorting the Nasdaq and junk bonds.

Meanwhile, Janet Yellen is warning that US gas prices could spike this winter as oil soars once Europe stops buying Russian crude

  • Oil prices rose. West Texas Intermediate crude picked up 1% to $87.66 per barrel. Brent crude, the international benchmark, increased by 1.2% to $93.92.
  • Gold gained 0.8% to $1,741.60 per ounce. The 10-year Treasury yield fell by 2 basis points to 3.28%.
  • Bitcoin moved up 3.3% to $22,349.04. 

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