NEW YORK, July 17 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks ended higher on Monday as investors waited for quarterly reports from some of the biggest companies in the United States.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 76.32 points, or 0.22 percent, to 34,585.35. The S&P 500 added 17.37 points, or 0.39 percent, to 4,522.79. The Nasdaq Composite Index increased 131.24 points, or 0.93 percent, to 14,244.95.
Six of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors ended in red, with utilities and real estate leading the laggards by going down 1.18 percent and 0.83 percent, respectively. Meanwhile, technology and financials led the gainers by rising 1.33 percent and 1.00 percent, respectively.
U.S. stocks were trading higher on Monday, led by the tech-heavy Nasdaq. Investors geared up for a busy week of second quarter corporate earnings, with results from financial institutions like Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Bank of America and technology companies like Tesla and Netflix due this week.
The next few days are full of potential market catalysts, with some analysts forecasting a gloomy earnings season with lower profits. Meanwhile, the Federal Reserve is expected to raise interest rates at its policy meeting next week, and high interest rates remain a major concern for Wall Street.
"Wall Street is bracing for some big bank earnings that might not mirror what JPMorgan said last week. The key to the stock market remains the mega-cap tech trade and many traders won't do any major positioning until we hear from Netflix and Tesla," said Edward Moya, senior market analyst at OANDA, a supplier of online multi-asset trading services.
"While falling inflation last week was great news for the Fed and its war on higher prices, equity investors should be careful what they wish for, as this is a slippery slope for earnings growth and hence stock valuations which are now quite extended," said Mike Wilson, chief investment officer and chief U.S. equity strategist at Morgan Stanley.
