Major stock indexes edged up Monday in a mixed showing by sector with support from a recovery in Nvidia after its weakness last week. The Dow Jones industrial average firmed 0.2 percent, the S&P 500 rose 0.3 percent and the Nasdaq was up 0.5 percent. US Treasury yields, the dollar and oil prices all slipped.

Federal Reserve comments kept investors hoping for more rate cuts as officials expressed caution about lingering inflation but appeared open to the prospect of rate cuts. Lots of attention on likely government shutdown starting at midnight on Tuesday night with increasing expectation for a disruption in regular release of economic reports, including the employment figures due on Friday. Better than expected home sales data lifted homebuilders while President Trump's latest tariffs on furniture imports hit housing-related retail.

Among sectors, energy stocks had a bad day on falling oil prices. Other weak links included apparel, cruise lines, chemicals, and food. Other best performers included media, rail, airlines, restaurants and chipmakers.

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.