Investing.com - Although U.S. stocks ticked slightly higher in cautious trading on Monday, the rise was sufficient for the S&P 500 to mark new all-time intraday highs, topping the previous record seen last September.
A jump in consumer spending, while inflation remained in check, boosted bullish sentiment in equities.
At 9:59 AM ET (13:59 GMT), the S&P 500 advanced 3 points, or 0.1%, to 2,942.74 points, close to the record intraday high of 2,945.95 points. Meanwhile, the Dow Jones was little changed, at 26,543.53 points, while the Nasdaq Composite edged forward 6 points, or 0.1%, to 8,152.27 points.
On the economic front, government data released Monday provided a strong picture of the American consumer, responsible for two-thirds of U.S. economic activity. Personal spending surged 0.9% in March, its largest increase more than nine-and-a-half years.
Meanwhile, inflation data released Monday left expectations intact that the Federal Reserve will make no changes to interest rates this week.
The core personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index, generally considered the Fed’s preferred inflation indicator, slowed to 1.6% in March, its smallest annual gain in 14 months.
Muted inflation has been a key factor to support the Fed’s decision to drop thoughts of further policy tightening this year. Markets continue to go even further, pricing in the possibility of a rate cut by the end of the year.
The fact that the first-quarter earnings season has been more upbeat than expected has also helped to push stocks higher.
What will be a busy week for earnings - with more than 150 S&P 500 firms reporting - started off slow on Monday. Although Spotify (NYSE:SPOT) posted a wider-than-expected loss, a revenue beat and the fact that its paid subscribers topped the 100 million milestone sent shares higher.
On the downside, Restaurant Brands International (NYSE:QSR) saw shares slide after earnings missed consensus. While sales at its Burger King and Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen chains beat expectations, Tim Hortons comparable store sales unexpectedly fell, dragging down results.
Google-parent Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) will be the star of Monday’s earnings when it reports after the close. “The company’s escalating costs create a major concern that could put pressure on its stock after the Q1 report,” Investing.com analyst Haris Anwar warned in an earnings preview.
Outside of equities, the U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback against six rival currencies, inched up 0.1% to 97.81 by 10:03 AM ET (14:03 GMT), while the yield on the 10-year Treasury advanced 2.5 basis points to 2.53%.
In commodities, gold futures fell $7.65 or 0.6%, to $1,281.15 a troy ounce, while crude oil traded down 22 cents, or 0.3% at $63.09 a barrel.