US stocks climb as slipping bond yields ease pressure on markets

• Monday saw stocks gain modestly as bond yields retreated from August highs.
• But a larger rally could be complicated by a higher-for-longer interest rate regime.

Stocks saw modest gains on Monday as investors tried to claw back the month's losses amid lower bond yields and a busy week of economic data points.

Equities gained as the 10-year Treasury yield retreated from August highs above 4.3%, although last week's central bank symposium reaffirmed a higher-for-longer interest rate regime. In his remarks, Chairman Jerome Powell noted that the Federal Reserve would "proceed carefully" with further hikes and could stay aggressive if inflation persists.

Markets think the Fed will keep rates steady at its policy meeting next month, but see about 50% odds that the central bank raises interest rates by a quarter of a percentage point in November.

Upcoming inflation data this week will further inform investors about the potential path of monetary policy. The latest Personal Consumer Expenditures Price Index data, the Fed's preferred gauge of inflation, will be released Thursday, followed the August nonfarm payrolls report on Friday.

Here's where US indexes stood at the 4:00 p.m. closing bell on Monday:

• S&P 500: 4,433.31, up 0.63%
• Dow Jones Industrial Average: 34,559.98, up 0.62% (+213.08 points)
• Nasdaq Composite: 13,705.13, up 0.84%

Here's what else is going on today:

• China's efforts to bolster its markets ended in a temporary comeback — only to fall flat again.
• For the stock market to rise another 9% before the year's end, here are two things the Fed has to do, Jeremy Siegel says.
• Zillow predicts that housing market prices could climb another 6% this year.
• New home prices in China could see zero growth this year, as the property sector could keep falling.
• The Chinese offshore yuan is set to hit an all-time low this year, economists predict.

In commodities, bonds, and crypto:

• West Texas Intermediate crude oil was up 0.36% to $80.12 a barrel. Brent, the international benchmark, edged lower to $84.47 a barrel.
• Gold gained 0.4% to $1,947.70 an ounce.
• The yield on the 10-year Treasury declined 3.7 basis points to 4.202%.
• Bitcoin slid 0.37% to $25.993.9.