Wall Street started the final week of Q2 on a quietly positive note Monday, with all three major indexes edging higher as institutional investors engaged in familiar quarter-end portfolio rebalancing. The S&P 500 added 0.4%, the Nasdaq climbed 0.6%, and the Dow tacked on 0.3%. Volume was moderate, and the mood was measured optimism — nobody wanted to rock the boat heading into the June 30 close.
Nvidia was the clear standout, jumping more than 3% after a high-profile Wall Street upgrade over the weekend reiterated that AI infrastructure spending shows no signs of slowing. The chip giant has now recovered substantially from its April lows and remains a bellwether for the broader tech sector's health.
On the downside, CVS Health slid nearly 4% after news reports suggested the healthcare conglomerate is bracing for a difficult back half of the year. Pharmacy margin compression and insurance-side losses have weighed on the stock for months, and today's move suggests investors are losing patience waiting for a turnaround.
Gold remained elevated near $3,285 an ounce, reflecting lingering geopolitical uncertainty, while oil held steady around $74. The VIX dipped to 17.4, signaling that traders are relatively calm heading into the last trading day of the second quarter tomorrow.