S&P 500 closes at a record high, driven by semiconductor stocks

US stocks closed at a fresh record high in Monday’s session, driven by strong gains in semiconductor shares, despite a surge in oil prices following President Donald Trump’s rejection of Iran’s latest proposal to end the war.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.19%, or 95 points, to 49,704. The S&P 500 gained 0.19%, or 13 points, to 7,412, while the Nasdaq Composite added 0.10%, or 27 points, to 26,274, with both indexes ending at record closing levels.

Gains were led by the semiconductor sector, with Micron Technology rising 6.50% to $795.33 and Nvidia up 1.97% to $219.44.

In Europe, the STOXX Europe 600 index edged up 0.11% to 612, supported by broad sector gains despite weakness in defense stocks.

Britain’s FTSE 100 rose 0.36% to 10,269, Germany’s DAX was flat at 24,350, while France’s CAC 40 fell 0.69% to 8,056.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 fell 0.47% to 62,417 after briefly touching a record high of 63,385 during the session. The broader Topix index rose 0.30% to 3,840.

In commodities, Brent crude for July delivery rose 2.88%, or $2.92, to $104.21 a barrel.

US West Texas Intermediate crude for June delivery gained 2.78%, or $2.65, to $98.07 a barrel.

Gold futures for June delivery were steady at $4,728.70 an ounce, after rising 1.85% last week.

Investors focused on gains in technology stocks, which offset the impact of higher oil prices following Trump’s rejection of Iran’s ceasefire proposal and his warning that the agreement was close to collapse.