Stock market today: Dow closes above 38,000 for first time as record run continues

The S&P 500 and Dow closed at record highs Monday, with the latter ending above 38,000 for the first time as the tech melt-up continued ahead of busy week of corporate earnings and key economic data.

By 16:00 ET (21:00 GMT), the Dow Jones Industrial Average, up 138 points, or 0.36% closed at record of 38,001.81, while the S&P 500 was up 0.2% to 4,850.43, clinching a second-straight record close. The NASDAQ Composite was up 0.4%.

Big tech melt-up continues as earnings season ramps up
Big tech, which have driven the rally in stocks, was mostly higher as investors awaited results from some big names including Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX), which reports on Tuesday, followed by Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) on Wednesday, as well as 3M (NYSE:MMM) and Intel (NASDAQ:INTC).

Chip stocks continued to add to the melt-up, led by Western Digital Corporation (NASDAQ:WDC) after Morgan Stanley dubbed the stock a top pick as the separation of the memory chip maker’s businesses into two divisions is expected to “unlock material valiue.”

Macy’s rejects $5.8B takeover bid
Macy’s Inc (NYSE:M) closed 3% higher after the department store chain rejected a $5.8B from Arkhouse Management and Brigade Capital Management to take company private.

The rejection comes a month after the offer was submitted, though the department store chain will likely remain a target for potential suitors after suggesting it was “open to opportunities”

Boeing suffers further setback as FAA calls for inspection on 737-900ER aircraft
Boeing Co (NYSE:BA) ended just below the flatline as the aircraft maker’s suffered another blow to its reputation after the U.S. Federal Aviation Authority U.S. aviation authority recommended that airlines carry out inspections of door plugs on Boeing 737-900ER aircraft.

The 737-900ER aircraft was the second model to be inspected following the Alaska Airlines MAX 9 jet that was forced into an emergency landing following a cabin panel blowout mid-flight and triggered a grounding of the aircraft.

Additionally, budget carrier Spirit Airlines (NYSE:SAVE) announced it and JetBlue Airways (NASDAQ:JBLU) had appealed a federal court decision blocking their proposed merger on antitrust concerns.

Gilead lung cancer drug fails to meet primary goal; Archer-Daniels-Midland plunges on accounting investigation
Archer-Daniels-Midland Company (NYSE:ADM) stock fell 24% after CFO Vikram Luthar was placed on administrative leave while the food processor investigates accounting practices.

The news come just as the company cut its full-year profit forecast, forcing many analysts on Wall Street to slash their price targets on the stock.

Gilead Sciences Inc (NASDAQ:GILD) fell 10% after the drugmaker said that its lung cancer treatment candidate Trodelvy failed to meet its primary goal of improvement in overall survival.

Key growth, inflation data ahead
Top-tier economic data is on the calendar for this week that will likely filter into the Federal Reserve’s interest rate decision next week.

The update on the growth trajectory for the economy is scheduled on Wednesday, with the release data on fourth quarter GDP, which is expected to come in at 2.0% after a 4.9% increase in the prior quarter.

Key US inflation readings on Thursday, meanwhile, will provide fresh insight on the progress toward the Fed’s 2% target at time when many are reining in their expectations for a March rate cut.

The odds of a Federal Reserve cut in March have shifted to 50-50 following a run of better data on retail sales and consumer sentiment, from just under 80% a week ago.

(Peter Nurse, Oliver Gray contributed to this article.)