The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose on Monday, kicking off a busy week ahead of the congressional midterm elections and key inflation data in the next few days.
The Dow gained 61 points, or 0.2%, while the S&P 500 gained 0.1%. The Nasdaq Composite fell 0.2% each.
Apple shares fell more than 1% after the tech company said iPhone production had been temporarily reduced due to Covid-19 restrictions in China.of shares Palantir It fell nearly 2% after missing earnings estimates.
Meanwhile, shares of Facebook parent Meta rose more than 3% after The Wall Street Journal reported that the company could start laying off workers as early as Wednesday.
Tuesday’s midterm elections will decide which party will control Congress and influence the direction of future spending. Democrats currently control the House of Representatives and hold a majority in the Senate. According to RBC’s Lori Calvasina, investors may approve of a potential stalemate in the midterms, as a Democratic president versus a Republican or divided Congress has historically meant above-average gains.
“[The] In this case, historical data supports the conventional view that the stock market likes political gridlock,” Calvasina wrote in a note on Monday.
On the economic front, investors expect Thursday’s CPI report to provide further insight into the Fed’s efforts to curb inflation. A red-hot inflation report could signal to investors that the shift away from higher interest rates could be further than expected.
“[In] In order for the stock and bond markets to match the post-peak inflation performance noted in the table, inflation needs to continue to fall—and faster than we have ever seen. Until the Fed signals a ‘pivot’ is near, things may remain challenging,” Baird’s Ross Mayfield wrote in a recent report.
Elsewhere, several companies are expected to report including Monday Activision Blizzard, Lyft and two people interact. Corporate earnings season is coming to a close, with most companies in the S&P 500 reporting results.