US stocks rally despite Boeing rout
Wall Street stocks won solid gains on Monday, shrugging off a sluggish first week of the year that investors took as a buying opportunity. "We basically are having a little bit of bargain hunting today," economist Hugh Johnson said of the rally. The Dow Jones, which had been in negative territory much of the day due to a sell-off in Boeing shares, finished up 0.6 percent at 37,683. The S&P 500 jumped 1.4 percent to 4,763, while the Nasdaq surged 2.2 percent to 14,843. The gains came after major indices opened 2024 with weekly losses, halting a more than two month rally propelled by moderating inflation and hopes for 2024 Federal Reserve interest rate cuts. Among individual companies, Boeing slumped 8.0 percent after the beleaguered airplane manufacturer was forced to ground some of its 737 Max fleet when an Alaska Airlines panel blew out mid-flight. Spirit AeroSystems, which builds components for Boeing, tumbled 11.1 percent. But chip company Nvidia jumped 6.4 percent after unveiling more technologies designed for artificial intelligence systems. Other large tech names also advanced, including Apple, Amazon and Google parent Alphabet. This week's calendar includes the December consumer price index report, which will be reviewed regarding its implications for Federal Reserve policy. On Friday, JPMorgan Chase and a trove of other major US banks will release earnings, offering another reading on the economy. (AFP)