The S&P 500 closed Monday at a record 7,173.91, up 0.12%, while the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.20% to a fresh all-time high of 24,887.10. The Dow Jones Industrial Average bucked the trend, slipping 62.92 points or 0.13% to 49,167.79, weighed down by softness in healthcare and consumer staples. Investors begin a heavy data and earnings week with the CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) at 17.4, its lowest reading of April.
The PHLX Semiconductor Index extended its winning streak to 18 consecutive sessions, the longest run on record, as money flowed into AI-infrastructure leaders ahead of capital-expenditure disclosures from the four hyperscalers. Nvidia (NVDA), Broadcom (AVGO), Marvell (MRVL) and AMD (AMD) collectively added more than $620 billion of market value during the streak.
Powell's Swansong Meeting
The Federal Open Market Committee convenes Tuesday for a two-day meeting that will be Jerome Powell's last as chair before his term expires May 15. Polymarket pricing implies a 99.9% probability that the federal funds rate stays in the 3.50%-3.75% corridor, reflecting overwhelming consensus amid sticky inflation. March CPI accelerated to 3.3% year-over-year from 2.4% in February as energy and shipping costs surged following the February escalation in the Middle East.
Wall Street's focus has shifted to Wednesday's 2:30 p.m. ET press conference, where Powell is expected to address how persistent oil-price pressure shapes the path forward. Goldman Sachs raised its Brent crude forecast to $90 per barrel for Q4, up from $80, citing damage to Strait of Hormuz throughput.
Mag 7 Earnings Superweek
Microsoft (MSFT), Alphabet (GOOGL), Meta Platforms (META) and Amazon (AMZN