The Nasdaq climbed 107.09 points (0.5%) to 22,591.15, the S&P 500 rose 17.51 points (0.3%) to 6,661.21 and the Dow inched up 68.78 points (0.2%) to 46,316.07.
Wall Street climbed as tech stocks showed strength, with AI leader Nvidia up 2.1% and Electronic Arts surging 4.5% after agreeing to a $55 billion all-cash acquisition by a consortium including PIF, Silver Lake, and Affinity Partners. EA shareholders will receive $210 per share, a 25% premium over the stock’s previous closing price.
Despite gains, traders remained cautious over a potential U.S. government shutdown, with Democrats seeking to extend enhanced Obamacare tax credits and Republicans opposing pre-debate inclusion. President Trump is meeting Congressional leaders to discuss the situation, while attention also turns to Friday’s Labor Department jobs report, which could influence interest rate expectations if released.
Computer hardware stocks turned in some of the market's best performances on the day, with the NYSE Arca Computer Hardware Index surging by 4.1% Western Digital (WDC) helped lead the sector higher, with the data storage company soaring by 9.2% after Morgan Stanley nearly doubled its price target for the stock.
Brokerage stocks emerged significantly strong, as reflected by the 1.4% gain posted by the NYSE Arca Broker/Dealer Index. Energy stocks moved sharply lower amid a nosedive by the price of crude oil, dragging the NYSE Arca Oil Index and the Philadelphia Oil Service Index down by 2.3% and 1.7%.
Asia-Pacific stocks moved mostly higher. China's Shanghai Composite Index advanced by 0.9% and Hong Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index surged by 1.9%, although Japan's Nikkei 225 Index bucked the uptrend and declined by 0.7%. The major European markets showed modest moves to the upwards while the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index crept up by 0.2%, the French CAC 40 Index inched up by 0.1% and the German DAX Index closed just above the unchanged line.
In the bond market, treasuries regained ground after trending lower over the past several sessions. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note which moves opposite of its price, slid 4.6 basis points to 4.141%.