Wall Street Gains Following Its Best Week Of The Year

US stocks held relatively steady on Monday, with Wall Street's summer roller coaster showing signs of leveling out.

Among the most significant movers in the mostly quiet market was Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), which saw a 2.8% rise after announcing its acquisition of ZT Systems. I Photo: AMD Facebook

The S&P 500 was up 0.3% in morning trading, coming off its best week of the year.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 178 points, or 0.4%, as of 10:45 a.m. Eastern time, while the Nasdaq composite saw a modest increase of 0.1%, as reported by Stan Choe for the Associated Press (AP).

Among the most significant movers in the mostly quiet market was Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), which saw a 2.8% rise after announcing its acquisition of ZT Systems, a supplier in the cloud computing and artificial intelligence (AI) sectors, in a cash-and-stock deal valued at $4.9 billion.

This gain helped to offset a 2.9% drop for Guess? Inc., following the announcement that its chief financial officer is stepping down to pursue another opportunity.

The apparel and accessories company has begun the search for a new CFO and has appointed an interim replacement.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 index dropped 1.8%, impacted by a rise in the yen’s value against the US dollar. The yen's fluctuations, spurred by a recent interest rate hike by the Bank of Japan, contributed to earlier market turmoil this month.

Trading remained quiet in other areas, including the bond market. Treasury yields were relatively stable ahead of what is expected to be the financial market's main event for the week: a speech by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Friday.

The setting for the speech, Jackson Hole, Wyoming, has historically been the site of significant policy announcements by the Fed. However, expectations are lower this time, as most anticipate the Fed will begin cutting interest rates next month, according to Seth Sutel for AP.