) lifted the tech-heavy Nasdaq to a higher close on Monday, while the Dow and the S&P 500 also eked out slight gains in light pre-holiday trading.
Real estate stocks, also seen as a bond proxy, dropped, as U.S. Treasury yields jumped to multi-week highs. But higher yields often boost bank profits so the S&P 500 banks index jumped to its highest in more than a month.) shares were at an all-time high after the biggest U.S. bank on Friday hiked its dividend to $1.25 a share from $1.15. Its board also authorized $30 billion in new share buybacks, effective July 1.
Traders have stuck to their bets of around two interest rate cuts this year, starting from September, LSEG FedWatch showed. According to preliminary data, the S&P 500 gained 14.61 points, or 0.26%, to end at 5,474.71 points, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 144.37 points, or 0.83%, to 17,876.26. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 46.25 points, or 0.12%, to 39,165.11.