U.S. markets closed slightly higher on Monday, as investors closely monitored escalating tensions in the Middle East after President Trump said the US-Iran ceasefire was on ‘massive life support’ following his rejection of Tehran’s latest peace proposal. However, upbeat corporate earnings helped ease concerns over the potential economic impact of the conflict. Meanwhile, President Donald Trump is expected to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping later this week, with trade and artificial intelligence likely to remain the key focus areas during talks between the two leaders.Traders also took note of the National Association of Realtors released a report showed a marginal rise in existing home sales in the United States, which edged up 0.2% from the previous month’s seven-month low to an annualized rate of 4.02 million units in April 2026.
On the sectoral front, gold stocks rallied sharply after prices of the precious metal edged higher, driving the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index up 3.7 percent. Oil producer stocks also witnessed strong buying interest amid a surge in crude oil prices, with the Philadelphia Oil Service Index climbing 2.6 percent. Semiconductor, oil service and networking stocks posted notable gains, while airline stocks came under heavy selling pressure, dragging the NYSE Arca Airline Index down 3.1 percent.
Dow Jones Industrial Average increased 95.31 points or 0.19 percent to 49,704.47, S&P 500 was up by 13.91 points or 0.19 percent to 7,412.84 and Nasdaq gained 27.04 points or 0.1 percent to 26,274.125.
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