US benchmark equity indexes were mostly higher intraday Monday as key chipmakers advanced, while traders awaited earnings of some major companies due later in the week.
The Nasdaq Composite was up 0.4% at 25,633.1 after midday, while the S&P 500 rose 0.2% to 7,468.7. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.4% to 51,950.7. Most sectors were in the red, led by materials and consumer staples, while energy paced the gainers.
Shares of chipmaking giant Intel (INTC) rose 3.8%, while Nvidia (NVDA), Micron Technology (MU) and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) were also pointing higher.
This week, 86 S&P 500 companies are scheduled to release their latest quarterly financial results, Oppenheimer Asset Management said in a note. Google parent Alphabet (GOOG, GOOGL) and electric vehicle maker Tesla (TSLA) -- which are two of the so-called Magnificent 7 stocks -- are slated to report Wednesday.
Intel, Philip Morris International (PM), American Express (AXP), T-Mobile US (TMUS), IBM (IBM), AT&T (T) and Verizon Communications (VZ) are among other major names expected to report this week.
"The reporting calendar is shifting beyond the first wave of money-center banks toward large tech, industrial and consumer names," Tigress Financial said in a note Monday. "The narrative will increasingly focus on whether (artificial intelligence) platforms, cloud providers and key cyclicals can match the strong bank prints without sparking renewed worries about margins or demand."
West Texas Intermediate crude oil was up 0.1% at $82.58 a barrel intraday, while Brent rose 0.5% to $88.55.
Iran could resume negotiations with the US based on national interests, CNBC reported, citing Tehran's foreign ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei. US intermediaries had continued to exchange messages with Iran, Baghaei reportedly said.
Amid soaring tensions with Iran, the US is looking to send additional F-16 and F-35 fighter jets from bases in Europe, as well as additional aerial refueling tankers, to the Middle East, CNN reported, citing a US official.
On Sunday, the US Central Command said it completed its ninth consecutive evening of strikes against Iran. The US military also confirmed the passing of three service members in the past few days.
"If this escalation goes unchecked, we could return to an environment of wide-scale attacks across the Persian Gulf," ING Bank said in a report Monday. "Vessel flows (in the Strait of Hormuz) have essentially ground to a halt."
US Treasury yields were higher intraday, with the 10-year rate up 6.3 basis points at 4.6% and the two-year rate rising 5.5 basis points to 4.23%.
In company news, Magnolia Oil & Gas (MGY) agreed to acquire privately held WildFire Energy in a roughly $4.06 billion deal, including debt, that will give it a dominant position in the Giddings field in South Texas. Magnolia Oil shares were down 5.7% intraday.
Gold edged down 0.1% to $4,015.10 per troy ounce, while silver advanced 1.4% to $57.11 per ounce.
