NEW YORK, New York - Technology stocks extended Friday's gains on Monday, pushed higher by shares in AI companies such as Nvidia and Broadcom. The Dow Jones hit a fresh record high, albeit with a minor advance.

"Investors are saying, ‘Okay, we had a tremendous bounce back. Does that have staying power? Is this something that I could get sucked into and only end up getting trounced, or is this really another buying opportunity?'" asked Sam Stovall of CFRA Research on CNBC.

"We went from a 17 percent premium to an 8 percent discount," the chief investment strategist said about tech's forward price-to-earnings ratio compared with its average for the past five years. "You could say, ‘Well, gee, that's pretty good, and so maybe it's time not to bail out on technology just yet,'" Stovall added.

NASDAQ Leads U.S. Advance
The technology-heavy NASDAQ Composite was the clear leader among U.S. benchmarks Monday, surging 207.46 points, or 0.90 percent, to close at 23,238.67.

The broader Standard and Poor's 500 also finished solidly in positive territory, gaining 32.51 points, an increase of 0.47 percent, to end the session at 6,964.81.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average underperformed its peers, inching up a modest 20.20 points, a rise of just 0.04 percent, to settle at 50,135.87, still another closing high. The narrow gain suggests a rotation away from some of the blue-chip industrial and financial names that dominate the 30-stock index.

Market Context
Monday's action reflects a continuing divergence between mega-cap technology stocks and other segments of the market. Investor sentiment appeared to favor growth-oriented sectors, providing a significant tailwind for the NASDAQ. The robust showing in Toronto highlights the ongoing sensitivity of the Canadian market to global resource demand.

Traders are now looking ahead to a busy week of corporate earnings and key economic data, including inflation reports, which may set the tone for the remainder of the month.

U.S. Dollar Weakens Sharply on Monday as Rate Cut Expectations Build

The U.S. dollar faced sustained selling pressure across the board on Monday, falling against most major peers as shifting interest rate expectations continued to drive foreign exchange markets.

Euro and Pound Climb
The European common currency was a notable gainer. The Euro (EUR/USD) strengthened by 0.87 percent to break above the 1.19 handle, trading at 1.1916. Similarly, the British Pound (GBP/USD) advanced 0.63 percent to 1.3695, capitalizing on the dollar's broad retreat.

Commodity Currencies Rally
The Australian and New Zealand dollars, often sensitive to global risk sentiment, posted strong gains. The Australian Dollar (AUD/USD) led the charge with a significant jump of 1.20 percent to 0.7094. The New Zealand Dollar (NZD/USD) followed suit, rising 0.74 percent to 0.6055.

Safe Havens Outperform
Traditional safe-haven currencies also found strength against the greenback. The U.S. Dollar (USD/CHF) fell 1.16 percent against the Swiss Franc to 0.7663. Meanwhile, the Japanese Yen (USD/JPY) appreciated, with the greenback dropping 0.87 percent to 155.81. The Canadian Dollar (USD/CAD) also strengthened, pushing the pair down 0.81 percent to 1.3559.

Global Markets Rally to Start the Week; Asia-Pacific Leads Gains

Major global equity indices closed firmly in positive territory on Monday, with Asia-Pacific markets posting particularly strong gains to lead a broad-based rally.

Canadian Market Jumps
Canada's main benchmark outperformed too. The S&P/TSX Composite Index rallied sharply, climbing 552.34 points, or 1.70 percent, to close at 33,023.32. The strong performance was fueled by robust gains in the index's heavyweight energy and materials sectors, which benefited from rising commodity prices during the trading session.

European Markets Edge Higher
In Europe, the region's benchmarks finished the day with steady advances. Germany's DAX was a standout performer, closing at 25,014.87, a gain of 293.41 points or 1.19 percent. The pan-European EURO STOXX 50 rose 60.61 points, or 1.01 percent, to finish at 6,059.01.

France's CAC 40 added 49.44 points (0.60 percent) Monday, to close at 8,323.28.  Belgium's BEL 20 rose 1.07 percent to 5,576.62, and the broader Euronext 100 Index gained 0.88 percent to close at 1,803.63.

UK in Modest Advance

The UK's FTSE 100 saw a more modest increase, climbing 16.43 points, or 0.16 percent, to settle at 10,386.23.

Strong Advances Across Asia-Pacific
Asian markets were a primary driver of the day's optimism. Japan's Nikkei 225 surged by 2,110.26 points Monday, a jump of 3.89 percent, closing at 56,363.94. The surge followed Sunday's historic victory by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi'sLiberal Democratic Party (LDP)  in the national elections.

South Korea's KOSPI Composite Index recorded an even larger percentage gain, soaring 4.10 percent or 208.90 points to 5,298.04; technical reporting issues prevented the display of its daily range data.

In Australia the S&P/ASX 200 rallied 1.85 percent to 8,870.10, while the nation's broader All Ordinaries index gained 1.97 percent to finish at 9,131.10. New Zealand's S&P/NZX 50 was a notable exception, eking out a marginal gain of just 0.02 percent to close at 13,446.37.

Singapore's STI Index advanced 0.54 percent Monday to 4,960.83.

Taiwan's TWSE Index advanced 1.96 percent to 32,404.62, and in Hong Kong Monday, the Hang Seng Index rose 1.76 percent to 27,027.16.

Other notable gains in the region included Indonesia's IDX Composite, up 1.22 percent to 8,031.87, and Malaysia's FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI, which closed 1.07 percent higher at 1,751.30.

In India theS&P BSE Sensex added 0.58 percent to close at 84,065.75. 

Middle East Markets
In the Middle East, Israel's TA-125 index climbed 1.59 percent to 4,092.75. Egypt's EGX 30 posted a gain of 0.52 percent, closing at 50,293.50. 

Africa
In South Africa Monday, the JNOU JO Top 40 USD TRI Index rose 93.9 points or 1.25 percent to 7,518.24. 

(This report incorporates quotes retrieved with the assistance of artificial intelligence).

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(File photo).