US benchmark equity indexes declined on Monday as traders positioned themselves prior to the presidential election and the Federal Reserve’s upcoming monetary policy decision this week. The Federal Open Market Committee is set to commence its two-day meeting on Wednesday, with a decision regarding interest rates anticipated on Thursday.
Market sentiment is leaning towards an expected reduction of the benchmark lending rate by 25 basis points, as indicated by the CME FedWatch tool. In the latest data, factory new orders experienced a decline of 0.5% in September, aligning with expectations highlighted in a survey conducted by Bloomberg.
Notably, transportation orders plunged by 3.1%, while other categories yielded a modest gain of 0.1%. The revisions for durable goods orders indicated a slight improvement, with a correction reflecting a 0.7% decline instead of the previously reported 0.8% decrease. Additionally, nondurable goods new orders saw a fall of 0.2%. In commodity trading, December West Texas Intermediate crude oil saw an increase of $1.98, closing at $71.47 per barrel, whereas January Brent crude, recognized as the global benchmark, rose by $1.93, settling at $75.03.
This uptick follows OPEC+’s decision to delay production increases amidst escalating geopolitical tensions, especially with Iran reiterating threats against Israel as the US election approaches. In stock market movements, Salesforce shares ($CRM) increased by 1.3% after Evercore ISI revised its target price on the stock from $300 to $400.
Meanwhile, Intel shares ($INTC) fell by 2.9%. Notably, late last Friday, the S&P Global division S&P Dow Jones Indices announced that Nvidia ($NVDA) would replace Intel on the Dow Jones Industrial Average starting November 8. As a result, Nvidia shares experienced a slight uptick of 0.8%..