The major averages managed small gains and stocks remain at record highs as investors await more concrete signs of progress in ongoing trade talks. China's Ministry of Commerce confirmed over the weekend that the two sides held "constructive" high-level discussions during a phone call that included China's top trade negotiator and U.S. Secretary of Commerce Steve Mnuchin and USTR Robert Lighthizer. However, any optimism about the talks may have been tempered by a CNBC reporter's tweet that government sources tell her that the mood in Beijing about a trade deal is "pessimistic." Meanwhile, President Trump and Fed Chair Jerome Powell had a meeting at the president's request that Trump called "very good" and "cordial."
ECONOMIC EVENTS: In the U.S., the NAHB housing market index slipped 1 point to 70 in November.
In central bank news, the Federal Reserve noted that Chair Jerome Powell met with the President and the Treasury Secretary Monday morning at the White House at the President's invitation to discuss the economy, growth, employment and inflation. "Chair Powell's comments were consistent with his remarks at his congressional hearings last week. He did not discuss his expectations for monetary policy, except to stress that the path of policy will depend entirely on incoming information that bears on the outlook for the economy," according to the Fed. President Trump gave his take on the meeting via Twitter, stating: "Just finished a very good & cordial meeting at the White House with Jay Powell of the Federal Reserve. Everything was discussed including interest rates, negative interest, low inflation, easing, Dollar strength & its effect on manufacturing, trade with China, E.U. & others, etc."
TOP NEWS: HP Inc (HPQ) announced over the weekend that its board had unanimously rejected Xerox's (XRX) bid to acquire the company, saying the offer undervalues HP and is not in the best interest of shareholders. However, in its rejection, the company also appeared to leave the door open to some type of potential deal, as highlighted by Deutsche Bank analyst Jeriel Ong.
T-Mobile (TMUS) announced that Chief Executive Officer John Legere will be stepping down from that post in May 2020. He will be succeeded by current President, Chief Operating Officer and Director Mike Sievert. In a conference call discussing the succession plans, Legere said he has not been in talks to join WeWork (WE), contrary to a recent report, and that he will not join companies he "hates," such as rivals Verizon (VZ) and AT&T (T).
After The New York Times published a report highlighting how FedEx (FDX) went from having owed more than $1.5B in taxes for the 2017 fiscal year to owing nothing in 2018, the shipper's CEO, Fred Smith, challenged the Times to a public debate, calling the newspaper's story "distorted and factually incorrect."
Officials with the Oklahoma Highway Patrol confirmed that three people were killed following a shooting outside of a Walmart (WMT) in Duncan, Oklahoma, according to a local Fox New affiliate.
Meanwhile, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra announced a lawsuit against Juul Labs, claiming that the e-cigarette maker failed to provide proper oversight when selling its products to minors. The state is asking for payment toa ddress the costs of underage addiction, among other costs. Altria Group (MO) owns a 35% stake in Juul.
MAJOR MOVERS: Among the noteworthy gainers was Karuna Therapeutics (KRTX), which skyrocketed 443% after KarXT met its primary endpoint in a Phase 2 trial. Also higher was Snap (SNAP), which gained 5% following CEO Evan Spiegel's interview appearance on CNBC this morning.
Among the notable losers was Amarin (AMRN), which slid 6% after an investigator-sponsored study of Vascepa, called "EVAPORATE," did not hit its primary endpoint and after Citi analyst Joel Beatty downgraded the stock to Neutral from Buy. Also lower was Spotify (SPOT), which fell 5% after Amazon (AMZN) announced that Amazon Music customers who do not yet have a Prime membership, or a subscription to Amazon Music Unlimited, can now listen to an ad-supported selection of playlists and stations for free.
INDEXES: The Dow rose 31.33, or 0.11%, to 28,036.22 , the Nasdaq gained 9.11, or 0.11%, to 8,549.94 , and the S&P 500 advanced 1.57, or 0.05%, to 3,122.03.
