Nasdaq outperformed, tech stocks rallied, even as crude declines weighed on energy, and government shutdown looms.

Market Recap

S&P 500: 6,661.21 (+0.3%)
Dow Jones Industrial Average: 46,317.07 (+0.1%)
Nasdaq Composite: 22,591.15 (+0.5%)
Russell 2000: 2,435.25 (+0.04%)

Markets rebounded slightly today, shrugging off hawkish rhetoric and focusing on gains in technology and semiconductors, even as energy lagged amid weaker crude.

Stocks on the Move (by sector)

Technology / Semiconductors

Electronic Arts (EA) jumped ~ 4.5% after a $55 billion take‑private bid by a consortium including Silver Lake, PIF, and others.
Nvidia (NVDA) gained ~2.1% as demand for AI workloads and new deal flows persisted.
Western Digital (WDC) surged ~9.2% on target upgrades tied to AI/data growth.
Intel (INTC) pulled back ~2.9% after a strong run and renewed speculation around funding, including Apple interest.

Energy & Materials

Occidental Petroleum (OXY) rose ~1.3% on reports it might sell its OxyChem business for ~$10 billion.
Energy broadly underperformed in Monday’s session, with pressure from weaker crude and OPEC+ output expectations.

Biotech / M&A

Merus (MRUS) soared ~36% after news emerged Genmab may acquire the firm in a cash deal.

Other Notable Movers

Robinhood (HOOD) jumped ~12.3% following the launch of its banking service.
Carnival (CCL) fell ~4% despite stronger-than-expected Q3 results, weighed by guidance and sentiment.

Sector Summary

Tech & Semiconductors led the rebound, leveraging momentum in AI and Data infrastructure names.
Energy & Materials lagged, dragged by soft crude and concerns over excess supply.
M&A drove outsized moves, underscoring the stock-specific nature of today’s action.
Money Flowed into Growth Stocks with strong secular narratives outpaced cyclical/commodity plays.
Small Caps: The Russell saw only a fractional gain, highlighting more limited participation versus large-cap tech.

Key takeaways

The market responded positively to in-line inflation reports, even as shutdown risk looms and hawkish Fed comments lingered.
Gains were selective, the rally leaned heavily on semiconductors, AI/tech, and growth stocks.
Energy struggled under pressure from commodity dynamics; cyclicals saw less participation.
Volatility remains elevated, especially given the looming federal funding deadline on October 1st.
The rebound underscores that sentiment can shift quickly when data and headlines align.

What to Watch Tomorrow

8:30 AM (ET)

Personal Income / Spending (Aug.)

Why It Matters - Updates on consumer behavior heading into Q4.

PCE / Core PCE (Aug.)

Why It Matters - Critical inflation inputs for the Fed.

Earnings Releases

Pre‑open (ET):

Microsoft (MSFT) reports earnings.

Closing Bell: Stocks Edge Up to Start the Week, Led by Big Tech and Semiconductors