LIVE MARKETS-Stocks rally after sluggish start

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STOCKS RALLY AFTER SLUGGISH START

U.S. stocks rallied on Monday after a sluggish start to the session, as investors assessed the continued selloff in the commodity space, while economic data in the manufacturing sector improved.

The Institute for Supply Management (ISM) said its manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index rebounded to 52.6 last month, the first time in 12 months that the PMI was above 50, which signals expansion, and the highest reading since August 2022. Still, respondents in the survey expressed pessimism due to uncertainty surrounding the U.S. trade policy.

Separately, the S&P Global final manufacturing PMI reading for January climbed to 52.4 from the prior 51.9.

"Manufacturing activity seems to be emerging from a cold winter, regardless of what Punxsutawney Phil says," said Brian Jacobsen, chief economist at Annex Wealth Management in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, referring to the groundhog weather predictor, who on Monday morning saw his shadow, suggesting to some that six more weeks of winter are ahead.

"We’ve seen signs of life before, only for manufacturing to dip again, but with new orders growing, maybe this revival is real."

The S&P 500 consumer staples index .SPLRCS was the best performing on the day, while energy .SPNY dropped roughly 2% as the worst-performing sector on the day, with crude prices settling down more than 4% as signs of easing tensions between the U.S. and Iran lessened supply worries, as well as a stronger dollar.

Earnings season also continues to pick up steam, with results from heavyweights Alphabet GOOGL.O and Amazon AMZN.O due this week, which should give investors further insights on how the artificial intelligence race is shaping up.

Disney DIS.N shares plunged 7.4%, however, its biggest daily percentage drop since November 13, after warning about a decline in international visitors to its U.S. theme parks and a slump in earnings at its TV and film division.

Below is your closing market snapshot:

(Chuck Mikolajczak)

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