US stocks mixed ahead of Fed meeting; Pfizer, Intel gain

Investing.com– U.S. stocks started the new week in a muted fashion as investors hunkered down on Monday before a Federal Reserve meeting this week where the central bank is likely to start a rate-cutting cycle. 

At 09:40 ET (13:40 GMT), Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 200 points, or 0.5%, while S&P 500 slipped 10 points, or 0.2% and NASDAQ Composite dropped 160 points, or 0.9%.

Markets were also somewhat cautious following reports of a second attempted assassination attempt on Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, although the former president was unharmed. 

Fed meeting looms, markets split over rate cuts 

The Fed is set to meet later this week and is widely expected to begin trimming interest rates, although traders are largely split over the scale of the potential cut.

Traders are pricing in a 50% chance of a 50 basis point cut, and a 50% chance of a 25 bps cut, CME Fedwatch showed. 

Wednesday’s move is likely to set the tone for the Fed’s plans to begin easing monetary policy, as it grapples with some concerns over a cooling economy and labor market. But recent economic readings showed inflation remained sticky. 

Lower rates are also expected to provide a more accommodating environment for equities in the coming months. 

Dow, S&P near record highs 

The main Wall Street indexes saw a strong performance last week despite sticky inflation readings, as heavyweight technology stocks were buoyed by some bargain buying and a resurgence in hype over artificial intelligence.

Broader stocks also rose, with bets on interest rate cuts driving plays into economically sensitive sectors. 

The S&P 500 surged 4% last week, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 2.6%, both indexes near record highs.

The NASDAQ Composite surged nearly 6%, but remained well below peaks hit earlier this year. 

Pfizer gains on trial success

In the corporate sector, Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) stock rose 1.2% after the drugmaker said its experimental drug to combat a condition that causes cancer patients to lose their appetite and weight showed positive results in a midstage trial. 

Boeing (NYSE:BA) stock fell 0.5%, after falling over 3% on Friday, as a strike by more than 30,000 workers stretched into its fourth day on Monday, with company and union negotiators due to resume talks over a labor contract on Tuesday.

Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) stock climbed 3% after a report showed the chipmaker has officially qualified for as much as $3.5 billion in federal grants to make semiconductors for the U.S. Department of Defense.

Alcoa (NYSE:AA) stock gained 5.3% after the aluminum maker said it would sell a 25.1% stake in its joint venture with Saudi Arabia’s Ma’aden for $1.1 billion.

Crude rises ahead of Fed meeting

Crude prices rose Monday ahead of the expected Fed rate cut later this week, although persistent demand concerns continued to limit any serious upside.

By 09:40 ET, the Brent contract gained 1.8% to $72.93 per barrel, while U.S. crude futures (WTI) traded 2.1% higher at $69.20 per barrel.

The U.S. central bank is likely to kick off an easing cycle on Wednesday, and lower rates bode well for economic growth, which in turn could help keep U.S. fuel demand supported in the coming months. 

That said, Chinese economic data released over the weekend pointed to more economic weakness in the world’s biggest oil importer, while Gulf of Mexico crude production resumed following Hurricane Francine, even if nearly a fifth of crude oil production remained offline.

(Ambar Warrick contributed to this article.)