12:52 PM EDT, 03/18/2024 (MT Newswires) -- US benchmark stock indexes rose, led by communication services, and government bond yields advanced in midday trading on Monday.

The S&P 500 advanced 0.9% to 5,161.2, with the Nasdaq Composite up 1.2% to 16,162.9 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average 0.4% higher at 38,853.9. Communication services and consumer staples were among the top gainers, with all the sectors in the green intraday.

In economic news, the National Association of Home Builders' monthly housing market index rose for the fourth consecutive month to 51 in March from 48 in February, compared with expectations for no change in a survey compiled by Bloomberg. The index was well above a reading of 44 a year earlier.

The Federal Reserve's monetary policy-setting committee is set to meet Tuesday with a decision on interest rates Wednesday.

The US Treasury two-year yield rose 2.2 basis points to 4.75%, and the 10-year yield climbed 3.2 basis points to 4.34%.

In company news, Apple ( AAPL ) is in talks to build Alphabet's (GOOG, GOOGL) Google Gemini artificial intelligence engine into the iPhone, Bloomberg News reported, citing unnamed people familiar with the situation. Alphabet was up 5.2% intraday, among the best performers on the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq. Apple's ( AAPL ) shares rose 1.6% intraday, among the top gainers on the Dow.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose 1.3% to $82.12 per barrel intraday.

Gold fell less than 0.1% to $2,159.9 per troy ounce, while silver slid 0.5% to $25.26.