Indexes: Dow down 0.3%, S&P 500 up 0.2%, Nasdaq up 0.6%
Kimberly-Clark to acquire Kenvue for about $48.7 bln
Iren jumps after $9.7 bln contract with Microsoft
U.S. manufacturing activity contracts in October
Nov 3 2025 – The S&P 500 and Nasdaq edged higher on Monday, after a slew of AI deals boosted megacap companies Amazon and Nvidia, while hawkish comments from Federal Reserve officials kept optimism in check.
Amazon.com (AMZN.O), opens new tab hit a record high after signing a multi-year $38 billion deal to supply cloud computing services to OpenAI, giving the ChatGPT maker access to Nvidia’s graphics processors.
Nvidia (NVDA.O), opens new tab gained 3.2% after President Donald Trump said the company’s most advanced chips will be reserved for U.S. companies and Microsoft secured export licenses to use its chips in UAE data centers.
Loop Capital raised its price target for Nvidia stock by $100, which also helped gains.
Optimism around AI has been driving markets to record highs after several so-called “Magnificent Seven” companies pointed to a surge in spending on the technology. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq marked their longest monthly winning streaks in years in October.
“What’s creeping in is this narrative about AI and when business plans will be demonstrated to guide investors about when they will see profits from the AI investments,” said Peter Andersen, founder of Andersen Capital Management.
“Those that are starting to think that the financing of these deals, which are now being done off balance sheet in special purpose vehicles, might be an early sign of the frailty of financing these deals.”
Kenvue (KVUE.N), opens new tab jumped 16.5% after Kimberly-Clark said it will acquire the Tylenol maker in a deal valued at more than $40 billion. Kimberly-Clark slid 12.5%.
Private sector economic data, including Wednesday’s private payrolls, will be closely watched this week, with the second-longest U.S. government shutdown contributing to data fog and monetary policy uncertainty.
Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee said on Monday he was in no rush to cut interest rates again with inflation at high levels, adding to recent hawkish commentary from other central bank officials following a 25-basis-point cut last week.
Traders are now pricing in a 70.3% chance of a 25-basis-point rate cut in December, lower than the 90% a week earlier, according to CME Group’s FedWatch tool.
U.S. manufacturing contracted for an eighth consecutive month in October as new orders remained subdued, data showed.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Supreme Court is set to hear a case around the legality of Trump’s tariffs on Wednesday.
