U.S. stocks rose on Monday as the U.S. and China held trade talks and investors looked ahead to this week’s interest rate decision from the Federal Reserve.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.9% to trade at a record high, while the S&P 500 gained 0.5%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average seesawed between small gains and losses. The major stock indexes all posted gains last week, with the Nasdaq closing at a record high on Friday as investors bet interest rate cuts were imminent.
Wall Street is overwhelmingly confident that the Fed will lower borrowing costs for the first time this year when it concludes its two-day policy meeting on Wednesday. Data released last week showed consumer inflation accelerated in August—though, no more than Wall Street was expecting—while wholesale prices declined on the month, further cementing the likelihood of a 25 basis point cut this week. Investors will be scrutinizing Chair Jerome Powell’s press conference to gauge the Fed’s willingness to continue lowering borrowing costs at its two remaining meetings this year.
U.S.-China trade tensions took the spotlight Monday, with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent heading up talks in Madrid. Bessent said the two countries were close to reaching an agreement on TikTok, the Chinese-owned video app that is facing a U.S. ban. President Trump later implied the deal had been agreed on.
Possibly complicating the talks: Chinese regulators on Monday accused chip giant Nvidia (NVDA) of violating antitrust law with its acquisition of an Israeli networking technology company in 2020. Nvidia, shares of which were down slightly in recent trading, has become an increasingly attractive target for Chinese authorities seeking to gain leverage in trade negotiations and foster a homegrown AI industry.
Tesla (TSLA) shares jumped more than 5%, leading tech mega-caps, after a regulatory filing showed CEO Elon Musk bought $1 billion of stock on Friday. The stock purchases were seen as a demonstration of Musk’s commitment to the electric vehicle maker, the board of which recently proposed a pay package that could top $1 trillion.
Big tech stocks were higher across the board. Alphabet’s (GOOG) market cap topped $3 trillion for the first time, with its shares up 3% in recent trading. Oracle (ORCL) also gained 2%, while Amazon (AMZN) and Meta Platforms (META) each rose more than 1%. Apple (AAPL), Microsoft (MSFT), and Broadcom (AVGO) were all marginally higher.
Treasury yields were mostly lower on Monday, with the 10-year yield, which affects borrowing costs on a variety of consumer and commercial loans, declining to 4.04% from 4.07% at Friday’s close. Yields have declined to their lowest levels this year in anticipation of Fed rate cuts.
Gold futures rose to a record high on Monday and were recently up 0.9% at $3,720 an ounce. West Texas Intermediate futures, the U.S. crude oil benchmark, were up 1.1% at $63.40 a barrel.
Bitcoin recently traded around $115,100, down from an overnight high of $116,700. The cryptocurrency came under pressure last month after hitting a record high of more than $124,000, but has trended higher in recent weeks after sliding.
The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the value of the greenback against a basket of foreign currencies, was recently down 0.3% at 97.30.
Corteva Looking to Split Seed, Pesticide Businesses, Report Says
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Shares of Corteva (CTVA) reversed course and traded lower Monday morning following a report that the manufacturer of crop seeds and pesticides is considering splitting itself in two.
The Wall Street Journal reported that an announcement could come soon.
Corteva was created in 2018 as the agricultural arm of then-recently merged DowDuPont, and became a separate company in 2019 as part of a three-way spinoff of DowDuPont into Corteva, DuPont (DD), and Dow (DOW).
The Journal noted that Corteva and rival Bayer dominate the U.S. corn and soybean seed market, and the motivation behind separating the business may be aimed at avoiding pesticide lawsuits such as the one Bayer is facing over its Roundup weedkiller.
Investopedia has reached out to Corteva for comment.
Corteva shares were down about 5% in recent trading. Still, they are up roughly 25% this year.
Intel Stock Rises After Chipmaker Cuts Expenses Forecast
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Intel (INTC) shares advanced nearly 3% Monday when the struggling semiconductor manufacturer announced that it was lowering its outlook for full-year costs following the sale of a majority stake in its Altera programmable chip business.
The company had disclosed the sale of 51% of Altera to private equity firm Silver Lake for approximately $3.3 billion in April, and the deal closed last Friday. Intel added that it would retain control of the remaining 49% of Altera.
Matthias Balk / picture alliance via Getty Images
Because of the infusion of cash, Intel now has a fiscal 2025 non-GAAP operating expenses target of $16.8 billion, down from its previous guidance of $17.0 billion. In a regulatory filing, it also noted that its target of fiscal 2026 operating expenses remained unchanged at $16.0 billion.
CEO Lip-Bu Tan has been taking steps to slash spending, saying in the company’s second-quarter earnings report that Intel was “taking the actions needed to build a more financially disciplined foundry.” CFO David Zinsner added that the “changes we are making to reduce our operating costs, improve our capital efficiency and monetize non-core assets are having a positive impact.”
With today’s rise, shares of Intel are about 24% higher year-to-date.
Alphabet’s Market Cap Hits $3 Trillion for the First Time
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Google parent Alphabet’s market value just reached a major milestone.
Its stock was up about 3% near $249 in recent trading, pushing Alphabet’s (GOOGL) market capitalization above $3 trillion, becoming the fourth company to do so.
The only others to have reached that level are Apple (AAPL), Microsoft (MSFT), and AI darling Nvidia (NVDA), which earlier this year became the first company to top $4 trillion.
Alphabet’s stock has gotten a boost this month after a federal judge ruled the tech giant doesn’t have to sell its Chrome browser to remedy an antitrust case, in a major legal win for the search giant that eased worries it might be forced to sell a key part of its business.
In a note to clients Monday, Citi analysts became the latest to boost their price targets for the stock to a Street high of $280 from $225, citing an “improving legal landscape” in the wake of the decision, as well as growing adoption of Google’s artificial intelligence tools across its ad and cloud businesses.
With Monday’s gains, the stock has added nearly a third of its value this year, making it one of the best-performing members of the Magnificent Seven for 2025, behind only Nvidia.
Nvidia Stock Slips After China Says Chipmaker Violated Antitrust Laws
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China said Monday that Nvidia (NVDA) violated anti-monopoly laws and that it would keep investigating the chip giant, putting the AI bellwether under pressure as Beijing and Washington continue trade talks.
The announcement from China’s State Administration for Market Regulation followed a preliminary investigation into Nvidia’s acquisition of Israeli networking-gear maker Mellanox Technologies in 2020. The announcement was cited by Chinese state media.
WANG GANG / Feature China / Future Publishing via Getty Images
Beijing gave the deal the go-ahead, with the proviso that China continues to receive supplies. Since then, however, the U.S. has deployed export controls to limit sales of high-end chips to the Asian country.
President Donald Trump in August allowed Nvidia to continue selling its H20 chips to China in exchange for a 15% share of revenues after initially imposing restrictions.
Nvidia shares, which entered Monday up 32% since the start of the year, were down about 1.5% in recent trading.
Tesla Stock Soars as Musk Buys About $1 Billion of Shares
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Tesla (TSLA) shares surged more than 6% Monday morning after it was revealed CEO Elon Musk purchased some $1 billion worth of the electric vehicle’s stock.
A regulatory filing showed Musk made 25 separate purchases last Friday totaling approximately 2.57 million shares for prices ranging from about $372 to $396. The stock closed Friday at $395.94.
With today’s advance, Tesla shares moved into positive territory for 2025.
Omar Marques / Getty Images
The move is seen by investors as a further commitment by Musk to Tesla, which has struggled this year with falling demand for EVs, and backlash from the CEO’s work with the Trump administration in cutting government spending.
Dan Ives of Wedbush, a longtime Tesla bull, wrote that the move “is a huge sign of confidence for Tesla bulls and shows Musk is doubling down on his Tesla A.I. bet.”
In addition, earlier this month, the company proposed a long-term pay package for Musk that could reach up to $1 trillion depending on whether Tesla meets certain milestones.
Stock Future Rise Ahead of This Week’s Fed Decision
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Futures contracts connected to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were up 0.2% in premarket trading on Monday.
S&P 500 futures also advanced 0.2%.
Nasdaq 100 contracts were also up 0.2%.
