(For a Reuters live blog on U.S., UK and European stock
markets, click LIVE/ or type LIVE/ in a news window.)
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Indexes up: S&P 500 0.23%, Nasdaq 100 up 0.22%, Dow up
0.41%
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Juniper Networks ( JNPR ), HPE rise after DoJ settles antitrust
case
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Oracle's cloud deal to bring $30 bln in annual sales,
shares
jump
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Banking shares rise after Fed's stress test
(Updates with market open prices)
By Sruthi Shankar and Nikhil Sharma
June 30 (Reuters) - The S&P 500 and Nasdaq scaled new
heights on Monday, as optimism over the U.S. striking trade
deals with its key partners fueled the bullish momentum that has
kept indexes on track for gains this quarter.
The Nasdaq, S&P 500 and Dow Jones
have gained 17.5%, 10.2% and 4.6% so far in the quarter,
touching and then retreating from record levels since late last
year, partly because of headlines around President Donald
Trump's rapid policy changes.
The three indexes are still set for their weakest
first-half performances since 2022, as the resulting uncertainty
around policy has kept investors wary.
The blue-chip Dow remains 2.3% below its record closing
high reached on December 4.
On Monday, the benchmark S&P 500 and the
tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite extended their record run
from last week, on bets of deeper U.S. interest rate cuts and
renewed optimism around AI.
Investor focus is now on a July 9 deadline for countries to
reach deals with the United States or see tariffs spike higher,
but Trump has said he could extend the tariff deadline or "make
it shorter".
Canada on Sunday scrapped its digital services tax targeting
U.S. tech firms, just hours before it was due to take effect, in
a bid to advance stalled trade negotiations with the United
States.
"We've got this deadline coming, but then Trump has said
that the deadline can be moved. And then you've got markets
thinking that the Fed could potentially cut interest rates
sooner than later. So there are a lot of drivers here," said
Dennis Dick, at trader at Triple D Trading Inc.
"Investors are just confident here in this market right now,
because we've had some bad news come in, even some bad earnings
reports, and they buy the stocks right back. So bulls remain in
complete control."
Investors are also looking into economic data and fiscal
policy developments to see if the latest bull run in U.S. stocks
can continue.
U.S. Senate Republicans will try to pass Trump's sweeping
tax-cut and spending bill, despite divisions within the party
about its expected $3.3 trillion hit to the $36.2 trillion
national debt. Trump wants the bill passed before the July 4
Independence Day holiday.
Key economic data releases this week include monthly
non-farm payrolls and the Institute for Supply Management's
survey on manufacturing and services sectors for June.
Several U.S. central bank officials including Federal
Reserve Chair Jerome Powell are scheduled to speak later this
week.
A raft of soft economic data and expectations that Trump
will replace Powell with someone dovish have pushed up bets of
rate cuts from the Fed this year.
At 09:59 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average
rose 178.68 points, or 0.41%, to 43,998.06, the S&P 500
gained 14.13 points, or 0.23%, to 6,187.20 and the Nasdaq
Composite gained 44.64 points, or 0.22%, to 20,318.10.
Shares of big U.S. banks rose after most cleared the Federal
Reserve's annual "stress test", paving the way for billions in
stock buybacks and dividends.
Shares of Bank of America ( BAC ) edged up 0.8%, while
rivals JPMorgan Chase ( JPM ) and Wells Fargo ( WFC ) added 1.5%
and 1.9%.
Juniper Networks ( JNPR ) rose 8.3% after the U.S. Justice
Department settled its lawsuit challenging server maker Hewlett
Packard Enterprise's ( HPE ) all-cash acquisition of the
networking gear maker for $14 billion.
Hewlett Packard Enterprise ( HPE ) shares soared 9.6%.
Shares of Oracle rose 6.4% after the company said
the new cloud services agreement is expected to contribute more
than $30 billion to annual revenue starting in fiscal year 2028.
The S&P 500 posted 25 new 52-week highs and no new lows
while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 61 new highs and 37 new
lows.
Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.56-to-1 ratio
on the NYSE, while by a 1.7-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.