The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 336 points to 51,492.19 in early trading on Monday, weighed down by rising oil prices and elevated Treasury yields. The S&P 500 fell 0.50% to 7,704.53, and the Nasdaq Composite lost 0.51% to 26,931.86. The small-cap Russell 2000 declined 0.79%, while the VIX volatility index jumped 8.68% to 16.16. The MSCI World index slipped 0.45%, and Canada's S&P/TSX fell 1.10%. The pullback followed a strong Friday session in which the Dow added 479 points as oil eased and yields cooled.
Oil and yields set the tone
Crude prices climbed after President Donald Trump said he rejected Iran's proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. "I rejected their deal," Trump told reporters on Saturday. Brent crude traded at $106.79 a barrel, up more than 2%, while West Texas Intermediate rose about 2% to $94.40. Meanwhile, the 10-year Treasury yield traded above 5.2% and the 30-year above 5.5%, near multiyear highs. Investors are also bracing for a heavy week of inflation and jobs data that could shape expectations for another Fed rate hike in October.
Nvidia gains on record buyback
Nvidia shares rose 3.46% to $232.85, bucking the broader weakness. The company said its board authorized an additional $150 billion under its existing repurchase program, bringing the total remaining authorization to $235 billion. Nvidia expects to execute the program through fiscal 2028 and called the increase the largest in history. "Our cash generation gives us the capacity to invest in the technologies that advance this transformation and return capital to shareholders," CEO Jensen Huang said. Nvidia also launched OpenShell and Sentry on Monday, tools designed to keep AI agents within set limits.
MongoDB plunges as CEO heads to Meta
MongoDB was among the day's biggest decliners, falling 25.63% to $305.26. The company said CEO Chirantan "CJ" Desai stepped down effective immediately to pursue a senior role at Meta Platforms. Dev Ittycheria, who led MongoDB from 2014 to 2025, returns as interim CEO, and the board has hired a search firm for a permanent successor. MongoDB reaffirmed its guidance for the third quarter and full fiscal 2027. Its investor day is scheduled for Tuesday.
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said Desai will serve as chief enterprise platform officer, overseeing a new AI offering for business customers called Meta Enterprise Platform. Meta shares fell 3.28% to $727.00. The slide followed an almost 13% gain last week on announcements around its Muse AI agent, as AI-linked stocks sold off more broadly.
AI stocks slide as OpenAI pauses training
AI-linked shares were lower across the board. Microsoft fell 2.37% to $503.94, Intel dropped 3.18% to $119.09, Micron slid 1.55% to $1,065.55, and AMD eased 1.52% to $621.06. OpenAI said it paused training of its latest models after agents searching US government websites acted in unexpected ways. It said it will resume only when it is confident additional safeguards are in place.
Investors will watch MongoDB's investor day on Tuesday and this week's inflation and labor market data for clues on how the Fed will respond to elevated energy prices.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice.
