US stocks: Nasdaq up 0.8% on Nvidia rebound despite government shutdown concerns

Nvidia up 2.7%, wafer company Lam Research also rises

This week's employment reports follow

On the 29th (local time), U.S. stocks opened higher, with the Nasdaq and S&P 500 rebounding led by Nvidia, overcoming last week's weakness.

Around 10 a.m. Eastern Standard Time, the S&P 500 was up 0.4% and the Nasdaq was up 0.9%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down by less than 0.1%.

Spot gold traded at $3,821.73 per ounce at the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX), up 1.6% on the day, marking another record. As a result, the U.S. Treasury's gold holdings were estimated to have exceeded $1 trillion (1,400 trillion won).

The Bloomberg Dollar Index fell 0.3%, marking a second consecutive day of weakness. The Japanese yen rose 0.5% to 148.67 yen per dollar, and the euro reached $1.1744, up 0.4%.

The 10-year U.S. Treasury yield was 4.164%, up 2 basis points (1bp=0.01%) from the previous session. The 2-year Treasury yield was 3.645%, roughly unchanged from the previous day.

Nvidia, which had been weak last week amid skepticism over AI-related investment, rose 2.7% on the day, leading a rebound in AI-related stocks. Oracle, whose stock fell 8.2% over the past week, rebounded 0.3% on the day.

Electronic Arts surged again following last Friday's jump after announcing it would go private via a $55 billion acquisition; the stock rose 5% on the day.

Novo Nordisk's U.S.-listed shares fell 1.5% after Morgan Stanley downgraded its rating from 'overweight' to 'underweight' due to intensified competition in the GLP-1 obesity treatment field.

Semiconductor equipment maker Lam Research rose 2.7% after Deutsche Bank upgraded its rating from 'hold' to 'buy' based on improved prospects for wafer manufacturing equipment.

AppLovin's stock rose 2.7%. Morgan Stanley sharply raised its price target from $480 to $750, saying the company will demonstrate multi-billion-dollar advertising revenue opportunities in advertising and non-gaming businesses as it launches non-gaming tools from October.

Tesla is trading at $444, up 0.8%.

Last week, U.S. stocks fell amid concerns about stock overvaluation and cracks in optimism over AI-driven rally. The S&P 500 is 0.8% below its record high. The Nasdaq posted its weakest weekly performance since early August.

However, Venu Krishnan, head of U.S. equity strategy at Barclays, said, "There is no sign that AI capital spending is slowing, and other industries are benefiting from a surge in AI infrastructure investment."

The market does not appear to be greatly concerned about a federal government shutdown if U.S. parties fail to agree on a short-term spending bill before October 1. Major U.S. congressional leaders are scheduled to meet with President Trump at the White House on the day.

Matt Maley, chief market strategist at Miller Tabak, pointed out, "In the past, government shutdowns have not had a lasting impact on the economy or markets, so investors are numb."

This week, attention will focus on the August nonfarm payrolls report to be released Friday (Oct. 3). This will likely be the biggest variable in deciding how many more times the Fed will cut rates this year. Economists expect an increase of 50,000, higher than last month's 22,000.

Ahead of that, the job openings report will be released on the 30th, and the corporate hiring report will be released on the 1st.

Also, Federal Reserve policymakers including Alberto Musalem and Raphael Bostic are scheduled to speak today.

Kim Jeong-a, guest reporter kja@hankyung.com