Wall Street manages to maintain upward trend, makes modest gains

Wall Street noted a modest rise in stocks midday on Monday and followed the upward trend of pushing major financial indexes to a series of record highs as investors review mostly solid corporate gains.

The S&P 500 rose 0.1% as of 11:46 AM Eastern. The benchmark index is coming off of five straight weekly gains. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 77 points, or 0.2%, to 36,407 and the NASDAQ rose 0.2%, according to reports from Associated Press.

Every major index had a succession of multiple record high closes last week.

A landmark movement on Wall Street was seen in Tesla’s stock as the week opened. CEO Elon Musk promised to sell off 10% of his stock after asking his social media followers about a potential deal over the weekend. The stock fell 3.2%.

The stock market indicated boosted confidence of investors in the economic growth of the United States as smaller stocks have also been making solid gains and overshadowed the performance of the rest of the market.

Technology companies also gained ground and helped offset losses elsewhere in the broader market.

Bond yields edged higher. The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 1.48% from 1.45% late Friday.

Stocks were roughly split between gainers and losers within the S&P 500. Banks were seen making solid gains on Monday thorugh the day.

A mix of companies the rely on direct consumer spending for goods and services fell, along with companies that sell household products.

The latest round of corporate earnings is starting to wind down, but investors still have several report cards from some big companies to review. Health care services and products company Cardinal Health will report its financial results on Tuesday and entertainment giant Walt Disney will report earnings on Wednesday.

Wall Street will also get several updates on inflation this week. Rising inflation remains a key concern as companies contend with higher raw materials costs and supply chain problems, while consumers face higher prices. Investors are watching closely to see whether higher prices impact consumer spending and the economic recovery, especially as the holiday shopping season quickly approaches.

The United States Department of Labor is expected to announce the Producer Price Index later on Tuesday, which measures inflationary pressures before they reach consumers. On the other hand, the Consumer Price Index will be released the following day.

(With AP inputs)