US close: Markets eke out Monday gain

Stocks in the US mostly edged their way higher on Monday, extending a recent rally - albeit only slightly - with surging oil prices blowing steam into energy shares.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 67.18 points, or 0.4%, to close at 17,073.95.The S&P 500 managed a 1.77 point rise, or 0.1%, to 2,001.76, and the Nasdaq fell slightly by 8.77 points, or 0.2%, to 4,708.25.

Investors appeared to be taking a wait-and-see approach to the markets ahead of Thursday's European Central Bank meeting, in a cooling off from the recent three-week rebound that saw the Dow Industrials reach above 17,000 point for the first time since early January.

Many were anticipating more stimulus to come out of the ECB meeting.

"People are definitely watching and being somewhat circumspect in their investing," said JonesTrading managing director Tom Carter.

Rebounding commodity prices extended from Asian trading into the US, fuelling energy stocks. Brent crude was last up 5.05% at $40.78 per barrel, and West Texas Intermediate was up 5.35% at $37.95.

Both Chevron and Exxon Mobil saw big gains on the Dow, up 3.12% and 2.64% respectively. On the S&P 500, Murphy Oil and Southwestern Energy rose 12.62% and 9.71%.

Recent economic data, easing fears of recession, also helped to stoke the markets, with investors reportedly buying back some of the assets they sold off earlier in the year.

The nonfarm payrolls data on Friday further eased investor fears of impending calamity, with the yield on the 10-year US Treasury note being pushed up to 1.902%. That was the highest yield since 1 February.

"There's been a collective sigh of relief after starting the year in such a sloppy manner," said Rosenblatt Securities managing director Gordon Charlop.

China was also having an influence on the US industries, as the benchmark price for iron ore reached a nine-month high on Monday.

That came after Chinese officials said they would put economic growth above restructuring this year, with the market taking that as a sign of more stimulus to come.

In currencies, the greenback was last 0.27% weaker against sterling, with a pound being worth $1.4267. The common currency also gained on the dollar by 0.09%, at $1.1015 per euro, and the yen gained 0.29% on its American counterpart, at JPY 113.41.

S&P 500 - Risers

Peabody Energy Corp. (BTU) $4.79 +41.30%
Murphy Oil Corp. (MUR) $26.69 +12.62%
CONSOL Energy Inc. (CNX) $11.66 +10.21%
Southwestern Energy Co. (SWN) $8.59 +9.71%
EQT Corp. (EQT) $61.46 +9.09%
National Oilwell Varco Inc. (NOV) $34.93 +7.48%
CF Industries Holdings Inc. (CF) $36.88 +6.62%
Apache Corp. (APA) $51.02 +6.20%
Eog Resources Inc. (EOG) $75.47 +5.69%
Cimarex Energy Co (XEC) $95.47 +5.32%

S&P 500 - Fallers

Netflix Inc. (NFLX) $95.49 -6.00%
Equinix, Inc. (EQIX) $297.73 -3.87%
Constellation Brands Inc. Class A (STZ) $138.71 -3.61%
Newell Rubbermaid Inc. (NWL) $39.59 -3.39%
Nike Inc. (NKE) $59.25 -3.28%
Mohawk Inds Inc. (MHK) $180.95 -3.14%
Expedia Inc. (EXPE) $105.39 -2.89%
Diamond Offshore Drilling Inc. (DO) $23.08 -2.66%
Visa Inc. (V) $71.94 -2.65%
Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $11.58 -2.53%

Dow Jones I.A - Risers

Chevron Corp. (CVX) $90.67 +3.12%
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $74.77 +2.65%
Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) $84.46 +2.64%
E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Co. (DD) $64.71 +2.42%
International Business Machines Corp. (IBM) $140.15 +1.71%
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT) $67.89 +1.66%
Boeing Co. (BA) $122.90 +1.51%
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $27.14 +1.27%
American Express Co. (AXP) $59.00 +1.22%
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $52.64 +1.08%

Dow Jones I.A - Fallers

Nike Inc. (NKE) $59.25 -3.28%
Visa Inc. (V) $71.94 -2.65%
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $51.03 -1.92%
Apple Inc. (AAPL) $101.87 -1.11%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $155.35 -0.95%
General Electric Co. (GE) $30.29 -0.56%
Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $83.10 -0.47%
Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $44.01 -0.23%
JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $59.94 -0.18%
United Technologies Corp. (UTX) $96.92 -0.08%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

Vimpelcom Ltd Ads (VIP) $3.92 +5.38%
Endo International Plc (ENDP) $44.58 +5.04%
Alexion Pharmaceuticals Inc. (ALXN) $149.60 +3.56%
Illumina Inc. (ILMN) $161.62 +3.51%
Whole Foods Market Inc. (WFM) $33.61 +3.42%
Autodesk Inc. (ADSK) $58.17 +3.41%
NetApp Inc. (NTAP) $26.87 +3.35%
Viacom Inc. Class B (VIAB) $40.07 +3.22%
Mylan Inc. (MYL) $46.14 +3.04%
Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (VRTX) $90.95 +2.93%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers

Netflix Inc. (NFLX) $95.49 -6.00%
Ulta Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance Inc. (ULTA) $164.64 -2.56%
Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $11.58 -2.53%
Facebook Inc. (FB) $105.73 -2.45%
Alphabet Inc. Class A (GOOGL) $712.80 -2.39%
Alphabet Inc. Class C (GOOG) $695.16 -2.21%
Amazon.Com Inc. (AMZN) $562.80 -2.15%
Dollar Tree Inc (DLTR) $76.82 -2.00%
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $51.03 -1.92%
Costco Wholesale Corp. (COST) $148.17 -1.81%