Dow, S&P 500 Snap Five-Session Losing Streaks

Stocks moved mostly higher during trading on Monday, with the Dow and the S&P 500 both snapping five-session losing streaks. The Nasdaq bucked the uptrend, however, as the tech-heavy index closed lower for the fourth straight session.

The Dow climbed 261.91 points or 0.8 percent to 34,869.63 and the S&P 500 rose 10.15 points or 0.2 percent to 4,468.73. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq climbed off its worst levels but still edged down 9.91 points or 0.1 percent to 15,105.58.

The strength on Wall Street came as traders went bargain hunting following the downward move seen over the past several sessions.

The Dow ended last Friday’s trading at its lowest closing level in well over a month, down 2.9 percent from the record closing high set in mid-August.

However, the looming Federal Reserve meeting made traders reluctant to make significant moves, with the central bank potentially providing an update on the outlook for its asset purchase program.

The Fed’s two-day monetary policy meeting is scheduled for next Tuesday and Wednesday, but recent signs of slowing economic momentum could lead the central bank to hold off on discussing tapering.

A lack of major U.S. economic also kept some traders on the sidelines ahead of the release of reports on consumer prices, industrial production and retail sales in the coming days.

Energy stocks saw substantial strength on the day, benefiting from a notable increase by the price of crude oil. Crude for October delivery climbed $0.73 to $70.45 a barrel, its highest closing level in well over a month.

Reflecting the strength in the energy sector, the Philadelphia Oil Service Index soared by 4.2 percent, the NYSE Arca Oil Index spiked by 3.4 percent and the NYSE Arca Natural Gas Index surged up by 2.5 percent.

Significant strength was also visible among airline stocks, as reflected by the 2.5 percent jump by the NYSE Arca Airline Index.

Gold, banking and telecom stocks also saw notable strength on the day, while tobacco stocks extended a recent sell-off.

Other Markets

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly higher during trading on Monday. Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index edged up by 0.2 percent, while China’s Shanghai Composite Index rose by 0.3 percent.

The major European markets also moved to the upside on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index inched up by 0.2 percent, the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index and the German DAX Index both climbed by 0.6 percent.

In the bond market, treasuries regained ground after coming under pressure in the previous session. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, dipped 1.7 basis points to 1.324 percent.

Looking Ahead

Trading on Tuesday may be impacted by reaction to the Labor Department’s report on consumer price inflation in the month of August.

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