Wall Street Today | Market Loiters, Pulls Back From Nvidia Excitement

The Dow last week rose 1.3%, notching its 14th record close of 2024 on Friday, while the S&P 500 posted a weekly advance of 1.7% and its 13th record finish of the year. The Nasdaq Composite rose 1.4% for the week, after briefly trading above its record close from Nov. 19, 2021, on Thursday and Friday.

"We are encouraged by the stock-market rally so far this year, which is being driven in large part by better-than-expected earnings and excitement over artificial intelligence, which is helping to overshadow the market's fears that the [Federal Reserve's] rate cuts may be delayed due to persistent inflation," said Michael Landsberg, chief investment officer at Landsberg Bennett Private Wealth Management in Punta Gorda, Fla., which has $1 billion in assets under management.

Landsberg said he expects 2024 to be "the year of 'show me the money'" regarding AI.

This week, the U.S. government again faces a partial shutdown unless the House of Representatives can agree on a government budget or extend the current stopgap bill by Friday.

President Joe Biden called on Congress to approve $1.6 trillion in funding for federal agencies by Friday. If lawmakers can't agree on the spending package or a further extension, government departments could shut down as early as this weekend, and would shut down further next Friday. Here is the timeline of a two-step possible shutdown and how it might affect markets.

March 1: Transportation, Housing and Food Safety departments would see funding expire.

According to USA Facts, around 44% of the 2023 federal transportation and infrastructure spending budget was highway transportation, and 23% was air travel. Full-time air traffic controllers are trained through this budget, which might halt during the shutdown. This could have a major impact on air travel.

March 8: Defense, Legal, National Parks and Science departments would see funding expire.

Military personnel would be required to continue working. Federal justice agencies such as the FBI and CIA would also stay on duty, as would Border Patrol and immigration services. But federal courts would be affected, meaning a backlog in hearings would build up.

Many federal science research institutes, however, would be disrupted, as could government grants for research. Many regulatory bodies would be suspended — apart from those that deal with human safety issues. The Securities and Exchange Commission, for example, would see most of its activities suspended.

Oil futures settled higher Monday, recouping a portion of last week's losses as traders continued to weigh the prospects for crude supply and demand.

Concerns about the economy and oil demand contributed to last week's losses for oil.

West Texas Intermediate crude CL00 for April delivery CL.1 CLJ24 rose $1.09, or 1.4%, to settle at $77.58 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, following a weekly loss of 2.5%. April Brent crude BRNJ24, the global benchmark, added 91 cents, or 1.1%, at $82.53 a barrel on ICE Futures Europe.

"The global oil market is experiencing higher uncertainty regarding the balance between supply and demand," said Stephen Innes, managing partner at SPI Asset Management. "This uncertainty has contributed to global benchmark trading within a relatively tight range."