(Sharecast News) - US stocks rose on Monday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average jumping to a new record high, as America's weekend assault on Venezuela sparked big gains in the defence and energy sectors.
The Dow surged 1.2% to 48,977.18 - after briefly topping the 49,000 mark for the first time ever - surpassing a previous closing high of 48,731.16 reached on 24 December.
Meanwhile, the S&P 500 rose 0.6% and the Nasdaq gained 0.7%.
Geopolitics across the Americas were in focus over the weekend after the US assault on Venezuela - including the capture of president Nicolas Maduro - and Trump's assertion that America is now running the owner of the world's largest oil reserves.
Despite heightened tensions in the Americas, "risk is on for the second trading day of the year," said Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB.
"Overall, risk sentiment is strong and events in Venezuela did not weigh on positive momentum. However, this does not mean that the recent events in Venezuela have been dismissed by traders, instead they could keep upward pressure on defence stocks as investors assess who could be the next target for the US, and as Russia and China get emboldened to violate UN law to meet their own foreign policy goals," Brooks said.
"This added level of uncertainty in the world may also see continued demand for precious metals, which are getting a new lease of life as we start the 2026."
Oil prices bounced on Monday, with Brent and WTI crude both settling 1.7% higher at $61.76 and $58.32 a barrel, respectively.
"Any Venezuelan flow disruptions should have only a moderate impact on oil prices and no outsized contribution to flight-to-safety moves in global markets," said analysts at TD Securities in a note.
Meanwhile, gold and silver prices were rising strongly - up 2.8% and 8.0% respectively - as renewed safe-haven demand pushed the commodities back towards record highs. Copper meanwhile was up 4% at a new record price of over $13,000/tonne.
In other news, the ISM's US manufacturing PMI fell for the third straight month to a 10-month low of 47.9 in December, down from 48.2 in November and below the consensus forecast of 48.3.
Energy, defence stocks provide a boost
Chevron was a standout performer, up 5% amid speculation that developments in Venezuela - where it remains the only major American oil producer - would boost the country's energy industry.
Petroleum refiners Valero and Phillips 66, and oilfield services groups SLB and Halliburton were all up between 7% and 10%, while giants ConocoPhillips and ExxonMobil were posting moderate gains.
Phillips 66 was also in the news after agreeing to buy the Lindsey oil refinery in the UK out of administration. The company said it would not be restarting fuel production there, but will instead integrate key assets into its nearby Humber refinery operations.
Defence stocks were also performing well, following their European counterparts higher, as increased geopolitical tensions boost their attractiveness. Lockheed Martin, General Dynamics and Northrop Grumman were all putting in decent gains.
Meanwhile, semiconductor and cloud stocks were performing well after forecast-beating fourth-quarter numbers from server giant Foxconn on the back of strong demand for its AI products. Nvidia, KLA Corp, Qualcomm and Amazon.com were putting in decent gains shortly after the opening bell.
Dow Jones - Risers
Chevron Corp. (CVX) $164.20 5.10%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $951.45 3.73%
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $617.52 2.96%
JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $334.81 2.63%
Dow Chemical Co. (DOW) $24.85 2.60%
Visa Inc. (V) $354.52 2.11%
Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $114.35 1.98%
Nike Inc. (NKE) $64.56 1.98%
American Express Co. (AXP) $380.09 1.90%
Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $343.58 1.67%
Dow Jones - Fallers
Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $320.72 -2.11%
Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $68.09 -1.71%
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $204.03 -1.47%
McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $299.80 -1.12%
Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $140.52 -1.00%
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $40.15 -0.72%
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $75.58 -0.60%
Home Depot Inc. (HD) $344.39 -0.50%
Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $0.00 0.00%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $39.44 0.00%
S&P 500 - Risers
Valero Energy Corp. (VLO) $180.85 9.23%
Schlumberger Ltd. (SLB) $43.97 8.96%
Halliburton Co. (HAL) $32.18 7.84%
Phillips 66 Common Stock (PSX) $139.59 7.21%
Fluor Corp. (FLR) $44.31 7.00%
Centene Corp. (CNC) $44.71 6.94%
National Oilwell Varco Inc. (NOV) $17.51 6.52%
KLA-Tencor Corp. (KLAC) $1,352.45 6.12%
Marathon Petroleum Corporation (MPC) $174.85 5.93%
Moody's Corp. (MCO) $528.51 5.59%
S&P 500 - Fallers
Comcast Corp. (CMCSA) $28.13 -4.77%
AbbVie Inc (ABBV) $220.76 -3.98%
Omnicom Group Inc. (OMC) $78.29 -3.65%
Eli Lilly and Company (LLY) $1,043.92 -3.60%
Apache Corp. (APA) $24.47 -3.51%
Devon Energy Corp. (DVN) $36.58 -3.49%
General Mills Inc. (GIS) $44.54 -2.95%
Coterra Energy Inc. (CTRA) $25.74 -2.93%
Fortive Corporation (FTV) $53.71 -2.85%
NRG Energy Inc. (NRG) $162.04 -2.75%
Nasdaq 100 - Risers
KLA-Tencor Corp. (KLAC) $1,352.45 6.12%
Tesla Inc (TSLA) $451.67 3.10%
Starbucks Corp. (SBUX) $86.56 3.08%
DENTSPLY Sirona Inc. (XRAY) $11.61 3.02%
Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. (TTWO) $257.31 2.27%
American Airlines Group (AAL) $15.83 2.24%
Henry Schein Inc. (HSIC) $78.54 2.24%
Paypal Holdings Inc (PYPL) $59.29 1.98%
QUALCOMM Inc. (QCOM) $176.31 1.93%
Idexx Laboratories Inc. (IDXX) $682.23 1.83%
Nasdaq 100 - Fallers
Qvc Group Inc Series A (QVCGA) $9.74 -14.41%
Comcast Corp. (CMCSA) $28.13 -4.77%
Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $320.72 -2.11%
Biogen Inc (BIIB) $174.63 -1.79%
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. (REGN) $763.23 -1.68%
CSX Corp. (CSX) $35.91 -0.99%
Biomarin Pharmaceutical Inc. (BMRN) $58.87 -0.98%
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $75.58 -0.60%
Baidu Inc. (BIDU) $149.68 -0.41%
Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $188.12 -0.39%
60.53 (0.59%)
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