Wall Street Rallies Near Record Highs; Oil Prices Tumble

Wall Street experienced a robust rally on Monday, rebounding from a slow start to the year and nearly erasing all losses from the previous week.

The Nasdaq composite posted a significant gain of 2.2%, representing its best performance in eight weeks. I Photo: Sami Keinänen Flickr

The S&P 500 surged by 1.4%, bringing it within 0.7% of its all-time high established two years earlier. This marked a return to positive momentum for the key indicator of Wall Street's health, following its first losing week in the last ten.

The Nasdaq composite posted a significant gain of 2.2%, representing its best performance in eight weeks.

Meanwhile, the Dow Jones Industrial Average recorded a more modest increase of 0.6% or 216 points.

Boeing, however, experienced a decline of 8% on its first day of trading after one of its jets suffered an inflight blowout over Oregon. Additionally, Spirit AeroSystems, a company that manufactures fuselages and other parts for Boeing, saw a loss of 11.1%.

Internationally, stock markets displayed mixed results.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng declined by 1.9%, driven by losses in property and technology shares, while Shanghai's stocks fell by 1.4%.

The decline in property shares was influenced by Zhongzhi Enterprise Group, a major lender to real estate developers, filing for bankruptcy in Beijing. China also announced sanctions against five American defense-related companies in response to U.S. arms sales to Taiwan and sanctions on Chinese entities and individuals.

The oil and gas sector faced challenges as well, with Saudi Arabia indicating potential weak demand for crude. This led to notable declines in the stocks of oil and gas companies, including a 1.7% fall in Exxon Mobil shares and a 2.7% loss in Marathon Oil.

The price of U.S. crude dropped by $3.04 to $70.77 per barrel.

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