US markets clinch third straight day of winnings
U.S. stocks registered modest gains on Monday but managed to close at new highs for the year, ahead of major market catalysts this week that include inflation readings and the Federal Reserve's policy announcement, which will strongly influence investor expectations on the path of interest rates. Market watchers increasingly believe the central bank is done with its interest rate hike cycle and could potentially cut rates in the first half of next year. These expectations have helped fuel a rally in equities in recent weeks that sent each of the three major indexes to their highest closing levels of the year. While markets had been pricing in a better than 50 percent chance of a rate cut in March by the Fed last week, data on Friday showed job growth accelerated and the unemployment rate dipped, while a separate report showed consumer inflation expectations had dropped. The data raised hopes the inflation could continue to decelerate without the economy falling into a recession and expectations for a March cut softened. The Dow Jones advanced 0.43 per cent to 36,404. The S&P 500 climbed 0.39 per cent to finish at 4,622, and the Nasdaq gained 0.2 per cent to 14,432. Later in the week, the European Central Bank (ECB) and the Bank of England (BOE), are also due to make policy announcements. Nike gained 2.33% to help buoy the Dow after brokerage Citigroup upgraded its stock to "buy" from "neutral". (Reuters)