Dow gains 100 points, Microsoft rises more than 1%: Live updates

The S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average are up 8.01% and 6.05% in November. The two major averages are on pace for their best monthly performance since Oct. 2022, when the broad market index jumped about 8%, while the 30-stock Dow surged 13.95%.

Meanwhile, the Nasdaq Composite is headed toward its best month since January, when it gained 1.67%.

— Hakyung Kim

The Invesco QQQ Trust hit its highest level since Jan. 2022.

Microsoft had the largest positive-point impact on the Nasdaq-100, up 0.7%, followed by Apple, which is 0.5% higher.

The Nasdaq-100 is also within roughly 30 points of its 52-week high of 15,932.74.

— Hakyung Kim, Gina Francolla

Leading economic indicators again pointed to a contraction in the U.S. economy, though the series looks like it’s bottoming out, The Conference Board reported Monday.

The board’s LEI index registered a reading of -0.8% in October, a touch below the -0.7% in September and slightly worse than the Dow Jones estimate for -0.7%.

While the narrative indicated that the index was consistent with a “very short recession” ahead, the indicator “may have reached a bottom.” The index combines 10 different metrics, including S&P 500 prices, bond yields and employment and manufacturing data points.

—Jeff Cox

Copper prices on Monday hit their highest level since September, bolstered by hopes of fresh China stimulus as well as a softer dollar.

Copper rose to 3.7645, its best level since Sept. 29 when copper traded as high as 3.7860. Meanwhile, the Global X Copper Miners ETF was higher in premarket trading. Notably, shares of Freeport-McMoRan gained more than 1% in premarket trading; the mining stock is already higher by 8.7% in the last five days.

Meanwhile, LME Aluminum hit a high of $2,241 per metric tonne, or the highest level since Nov. 14 when aluminum traded as high as $2,244.50

— Sarah Min, Gina Francolla

U.S. stocks opened flat on Monday.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average inched up just 9 points, or 0.03%. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite added 0.1% and 0.3%, respectively.

— Hakyung Kim

Check out the companies making the biggest moves in premarket trading:

Boeing — The aerospace stock added 1.5% following an upgrade to buy from hold by Deutsche Bank. The bank noted Boeing’s acceleration of aircraft deliveries and said it believes this improved performance can be sustained.

Microsoft — Shares added 0.5% after Microsoft announced former OpenAI CEO Sam Altman will be joining the tech giant to head a new artificial intelligence research team.

PENN Entertainment — The gambling stock popped 4.4% on the back of a Bank of America upgrade to buy from neutral. The firm said shares could be helped by the company’s new sportsbook, which is called ESPN Bet.

The full list can be found here.

— Hakyung Kim

A year out into the U.S. presidential election, economic “fundamentals” have historically been a better indicator of results, according to Goldman Sachs.

“The real economy matters more than financial markets. Broad economic variables like income, employment, and consumption matter more than market-based measures like equity prices,” chief economist Jan Hatzius wrote in a Monday note.

Hatzius added that growth and labor market variables have typically have been a better predictor of election results than inflation. Headline inflation, which includes food and gasoline prices, has a higher relationship with election results than core inflation, he added.

— Hakyung Kim

Microsoft shares were up more than 1% in the premarket after CEO Satya Nadella said Sam Altman, the ousted OpenAI chief, will lead a team within the tech giant to research artificial intelligence.

“We look forward to moving quickly to provide them with the resources needed for their success,” Nadella said in post on social media platform X. “We remain committed to our partnership with OpenAI and have confidence in our product roadmap, our ability to continue to innovate with everything we announced at Microsoft Ignite, and in continuing to support our customers and partners.”

— Fred Imbert

European stocks were mixed early Monday, with the Stoxx 600 down 0.09% at 8:33 a.m. in London.

The U.K.’s FTSE 100 and Germany’s DAX were 0.3% and 0.2% lower, respectively, while France’s CAC 40 was 0.2% higher.

Retail stocks led gains, up 0.75%, on a week in which strong sales are expected as consumers snap up Black Friday sales.

China’s central bank has held its one-year and five-year loan prime rates at 3.45% and 4.2% for November.

This is the third straight month that the People’ Bank of China has held the one-year LPR after lowering it from 3.55% to 3.45% in August.

The five year LPR meanwhile, has been held at 4.2% for five consecutive months, having been last lowered in June from 4.3%.

— Lim Hui Jie

From major tech names to a slew of specialty retailers, here are the biggest names reporting earnings this week:

• Monday: Agilent Technologies, Zoom Video Communications, Keysight Technologies, Trip.com
• Tuesday: Nvidia, Lowe’s, Medtronic, Analog Devices, Autodesk, HP, Best Buy, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Burlington, Abercrombie & Fitch, American Eagle Outfitters, Urban Outfitters, Kohl’s
• Wednesday: Deere & Company
• Thursday: Johnson Controls International, Aegon
• Friday: H World Group

— Pia Singh

Stock futures opened mostly flat on Sunday, with all of the major averages coming off of their third straight winning performance heading into a shortened trading week.

Dow and S&P 500 futures hovered near flat, while Nasdaq futures slipped 0.1%, or 19 points.

— Pia Singh