Nasdaq 100 Hits Record, Brazil's EWZ Soars 13%: Stock Market Today

Wall Street posted modest gains at midday Monday, with the Nasdaq 100 hitting a record high on megacap tech strength even as the 10-year Treasury yield rose to 5.3%. President Donald Trump said Friday of the Iran war that it is "going to be over soon… probably right after the midterms.” Oil slipped, with the West Texas Intermediate light crude falling about 1.0% to $90.20 a barrel, while Brent dropped 1.1% to $101.15. The S&P 500 gained about 36 points, or 0.5%, to 7,759, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 20 points, or 0.04%, to 51,157. The Nasdaq 100 rose 0.5% to 30,973. The Russell 2000 added 0.5% to 2,846. Elsewhere, Brazilian stocks exploded higher after right-wing Senator Flavio Bolsonaro topped the first round of the presidential election. The iShares MSCI Brazil ETF (NYSE:EWZ) soared 13.5% to $43.33 on heavy volume, while Brazil’s Ibovespa index jumped 8.6% to around 208,650 and the real strengthened about 4% against the dollar, to roughly R$4.99 per dollar. The macro backdrop was dominated by a hot-prices, firm-growth ISM report. The Institute for Supply Management’s services PMI came in at 54.9 for September, just under the 55.0 consensus and down from 55.4 in August, marking a 27th straight month of expansion. Under the hood, the Prices index rose 1.4 points to 74.0, its highest since July 2022, with respondents citing tariffs and diesel costs. New orders held strong at 59.8, while business activity cooled to 56.5 from 61.7. Employment climbed back above 50, to 50.1 from 47.8, a modest counterweight to Friday’s weak payrolls. The 10-year Treasury yield rose about 5 basis points to 5.33%, near its highest since March 2022, as the ISM prices gauge reinforced inflation worries. Investors now await minutes from the Federal Reserve’s September meeting on Wednesday. Precious metals were mixed. Gold futures were little changed near $4,166 an ounce, while the SPDR Gold Shares (NYSE:GLD) dipped 0.4%. Silver futures rose 1.8% to $61.51 an ounce, and the iShares Silver Trust (NYSE:SLV) gained 0.6%. In crypto, Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) traded near $85,150, easing over 1% from the $86,000-plus level it reclaimed early Monday. Monday’s Performance In Major US Indices IndexLast% ChangeMTDYTDS&P 5007,759.00+0.47%+1.40%+13.34%Dow Jones51,156.82-0.04%+0.49%+6.44%Nasdaq 10030,972.77+0.54%+1.86%+22.67%Russell 20002,845.98+0.46%+1.76%+14.67%Updated by 12:15 PM ET According to the Benzinga Pro platform: The Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (NYSE:VOO) gained 0.4%. The SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust (NYSE:DIA) slipped 0.1%. The Invesco QQQ Trust (NASDAQ:QQQ) climbed 0.5%. The iShares Russell 2000 ETF (NYSE:IWM) rose 0.4%. Brazil Rally, Deal Fever And An Energy Bid Lift Select Stocks Energy led S&P 500 sectors. The Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLE) gained 1.2% even as crude eased, with the VanEck Oil Services ETF (NYSE:OIH) jumping 4.0% and the SPDR S&P Oil & Gas Exploration & Production ETF (NYSE:XOP) adding 1.8%. The Communication Services Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLC) rose 0.9%, the Materials Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLB) gained 0.9% and the Utilities Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLU) advanced 0.7%. The Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLF) rose 0.4%, the Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLK) 0.4%, the Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLP) 0.3% and the Health Care Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLV) 0.2%. The Industrials Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLI) and the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLY) were roughly flat, while the Real Estate Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSE:XLRE) lagged, down 0.1%. Homebuilders were the weak spot, with the iShares U.S. Home Construction ETF (BATS:ITB) down 1.1%. The biggest story was M&A. PTC Inc. (NASDAQ:PTC) soared about 34% after Schneider Electric agreed to buy the software maker in an all-cash deal valued at roughly $22.6 billion. The announcement lifted peer Bentley Systems Inc. (NASDAQ:BSY), up about 9%, on expectations of higher valuations for engineering-software platforms. Brazilian ADRs rallied across the board as investors welcomed election results. Banco Bradesco S.A. (NYSE:BBD) jumped 19%, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. (NYSE:ITUB) surged 16% and Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. (NYSE:PBR) climbed 14%, while MercadoLibre Inc. (NASDAQ:MELI) gained 6.7%. Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE) rose a more modest 1.8%. Brazil-exposed U.S.-listed fintechs surged too, including XP Inc. (NASDAQ:XP), up about 34%, and Nu Holdings Ltd. (NYSE:NU), up 13%. On the downside, C.H. Robinson Worldwide Inc. (NASDAQ:CHRW) fell about 14% after agreeing to sell its Global Forwarding business to RXO. Millrose Properties Inc. (NYSE:MRP) dropped nearly 10% after Citizens downgraded the stock to Market Perform from Market Outperform, citing uncertainty over its shift toward buying build-to-rent homes from its largest customer, Lennar Corp. (NYSE:LEN). Insmed Inc. (NASDAQ:INSM) slid about 6% after announcing that CFO Sara Bonstein will step down Oct. 30 and reaffirming 2026 guidance. Monday’s Russell 1000 Top Gainers Name% changePTC Inc.+33.78%XP Inc.+33.77%Nu Holdings Ltd.+13.07%Bentley Systems, Incorporated+9.42%DraftKings Inc. (NASDAQ:DKNG)+8.4% Monday’s Russell 1000 Top Losers Name% changeC.H. Robinson Worldwide, Inc.-13.65%Millrose Properties, Inc.-9.69%Fervo Energy Company (NASDAQ:FRVO)-8.06%Insmed Incorporated-6.36%Lennar Corporation -5.43% Photo: Shutterstock