US Stocks Mixed Near Record Highs      10/12 15:31

   Wall Street kicked off a busy week on Monday with a mixed finish for the 
major U.S. stock indexes, although the market remained near its all-time high.

   (AP) -- Wall Street kicked off a busy week on Monday with a mixed finish for 
the major U.S. stock indexes, although the market remained near its all-time 
high.

   The S&P 500 slipped 0.1% after wavering between small gains and losses. The 
benchmark index set a record high on Friday and is up 14% so far this year.

   The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.4%, and the Nasdaq composite fell 
0.4%.

   Shares in roughly 64% of the companies in the S&P 500 rose, led by 
communication services stocks. Meta Platforms rose 3.4%, T-Mobile added 2.2%, 
AT&T gained 1.4% and Verizon Communications rose 2.7%.

   Energy stocks had some of the biggest gains as oil prices kept rising. 
Chevron rose 1.4%.

   Despite those gains, a slide in big technology stocks dragged the market 
into the red.

   Micron Technology fell 3.9%, Advanced Micro Devices dropped 2.3%, Broadcom 
slid 1.9% and Nvidia gave up 1.3%. They are among several companies in the 
sector with big stock values that tend to have a heavy influence on the market. 
They have also been the driving force behind the broader market's record gains 
throughout the year.

   Those companies could face more scrutiny from investors during this round of 
corporate earnings as Wall Street tries to get a better sense of whether the 
stock gains made during the frenzy over artificial intelligence can translate 
into future growth.

   "AI continues to support growth, reinforcing the outlook for tech and 
critical suppliers across the supply chain," wrote Magdalena Ocampo, market 
strategist at Principal Asset Management, in a report. "Yet uncertainty about 
AI's long-term impact persists, making future gains more reliant on earnings 
delivery rather than potential."

   Stocks are reaching for records often because of the tech sector, but remain 
very volatile on a daily basis, partly because of big shifts in oil prices and 
their impact on bond yields and inflation.

   The price of Brent crude, the international standard, rose 1.8% to settle at 
$106.65 per barrel. Prices have been swinging between $96 and nearly $110 over 
the last month over uncertainty about the U.S. war with Iran and its continued 
impact on global energy supplies and inflation.

   Prices jumped despite President Donald Trump's announcement on social media 
Friday that he struck a deal to buy Russian diesel with Russian President 
Vladimir Putin, aiming to tamp down a spike in fuel prices ahead of the Nov. 3 
U.S. midterm elections. The plan, though, runs counter to U.S. efforts to cut 
the flow of money Russia gets from oil and gas sales that can be used to pay 
for its war against Ukraine.

   Higher oil prices have been driving gasoline prices higher. That's a direct 
hit to many people's wallets, as gasoline is usually a necessary expense. The 
rise in diesel is more indirect, raising the costs for just about any shipped 
product, which usually results in higher prices for everything from food to 
clothing.

   The surge in energy prices and its impact on the broader economy will be a 
key focus this week as Wall Street reviews several important economic updates. 
They include fresh data on the housing market, inflation and retail sales.

   The big updates this week involve reports about inflation hitting consumers 
and businesses. On Wednesday, the government will release the closely-watched 
consumer price index, or CPI, which measures price changes for a wide range of 
products and services. Economists expect the index to show the rate of 
inflation worsened to 3.6% in September from 3.4% in August.

   A report on inflation called the producer price index will be released on 
Thursday and is also expected to show that inflation remains stubbornly high. 
It measures inflation faced by businesses before it hits consumers.

   An update on how consumers are reacting to high prices will be released on 
Thursday. Economists expect the report on retail sales for September to show 
that households pulled back on spending.

   The rate of inflation by any measure remains well above the Federal 
Reserve's target rate of 2%. That prompted the central bank to raise its 
benchmark interest rate at its last meeting in an effort to cool inflation. 
Wall Street expects another rate hike before the year ends.

   Inflation and expectations for high interest rates have been driving 
Treasury yields higher in the bond market. The 10-year Treasury yield, which 
influences mortgage rates, recently touched its highest level since 2002. It 
has since eased a bit and stood at 5.24% late Friday. U.S. bond trading was 
closed Monday for the Columbus Day holiday.

   Higher mortgage rates have been weighing on the housing market and Wall 
Street will get an update on home sales on Tuesday.

   The latest round of corporate earnings updates ramps up this week with 
financial results from banks. Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo will 
report their results on Tuesday and Bank of America will report its results on 
Wednesday. They have been reporting record profits throughout the year and Wall 
Street expects more of the same for the latest quarter.

   Markets in Europe gained ground and markets in Asia were mostly lower. 
Markets in Tokyo were closed for a holiday.

   All told, the S&P 500 fell 4.30 points to 7,807.24. The Nasdaq dropped 
120.27 points to 27,245.90. The Dow gained 195.60 points to close at 51,850.55.