Stocks climb as Trump looks to avert shutdown, crypto reacts higher

Wall Street saw an upbeat opening on Monday, with cryptocurrencies also climbing slightly as investors turned their attention to U.S. President Donald Trump’s efforts to avert a looming government shutdown.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose about 50 points, while the S&P 500 ticked up 0.5% and the Nasdaq Composite edged up 0.8% in early trading. The upbeat sentiment across the stock market, with the major gauges near recent record highs, comes as investors eye the next move in President Trump’s efforts to avoid a government shutdown.

Stocks’ uptick on Monday aligned with a spike in the prices of top artificial intelligence bets. The AI-related stocks signaling fresh moves include Oracle and Nvidia, two names that notched notable gains in the past week amid key deals, including that of Nvidia and OpenAI.

The gains allow bulls to hold near record highs despite last week’s dip that saw the major gauges string together a streak of downside closes.

Crypto market gains as stocks eye rally

The surge in stocks also reflected in the crypto market as Bitcoin (BTC) climbed to above $113,000 and Ethereum (ETH) hit $4,180. Overall gains saw the global crypto market cap rise 2.7% to $3.88 trillion.

Investors will weigh reports that Trump is set to meet congressional leaders from both Republicans and Democrats. The meeting between the president and lawmakers is set for the Oval Office in the afternoon on Sept. 29, as Trump looks to gain support for a move aimed at averting a halt to federal funding.

A shutdown beginning Wednesday is likely, and Wall Street sees this as potentially highlighting the risk that such a move could pose for the highly anticipated monthly jobs report.

However, investors remain optimistic heading into October, and Wall Street is keen on a positive outcome from Trump’s Oval Office meeting. Also on the agenda is the upcoming jobs report, which will be crucial in investors’ assessment of the Federal Reserve’s next interest-rate move.

Economic data releases last week had the market pricing in two quarter-point rate cuts from the Fed in the next two meetings. Cryptocurrencies could be on a tear should risk-on sentiment build amid fresh Fed cuts.