Bargain-hunting in megacaps after their losses last week lifted equities Monday. The Dow Jones industrial average firmed 0.3 percent, the S&P 500 gained 0.7 percent, and the Nasdaq rallied 1.1 percent. US Treasury yields and the dollar rose, and oil prices declined.

A weekend report from The Wall Street Journal's Nick Timiraos on Federal Reserve policy thinking bolstered the market's view that no rate hike is coming in September, and that the case for and against another rate hike by year end is evenly balanced. For the week ahead, investors are focusing on reports on consumer prices, producer prices, and retail sales as the last major data inputs before the Fed's September policy meeting. Investors are watching to see if the United Auto Workers will call for strike against US automakers late this week, which could slow the economy.

Tesla was the day's big winner after Morgan Stanley raised its stock price target, citing the automaker's supercomputer business. Meta was another leader on a report about its artificial intelligence plans. Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, and other megacaps rebounded after suffering last week.

Among sectors, best were consumer discretionary, communications services, financials, materials, consumer staples, and utilities. Lagging were industrials, energy, and information technology.

Market Reflections track market reaction to the trading day's major events. Economic data, policymaker speeches, and company news are featured in this report as well as key indexes and financial instruments.

Understanding why markets respond as they do is fundamental for an investor. Market Reflections help explain how the day's events, news, and data impact the outlook for the economy and for market prices.