Stocks Jump as Gold, Silver Continue Slide

US stocks rose on Monday following sharp swings that shook financial markets overnight, including tumbles for Asian stocks and then gains in Europe.

• The S&P 500 rose 37.41 points, or 0.5%, to 6,976.44, snapping a three-day losing streak and ending just shy of the all-time high it reached last week.
• The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 515.19 points, or 1.1%, to 49,407.66.
• The Nasdaq composite rose 130.29 points, or 0.6%, to 23,592.11.

The center of the action in financial markets was again precious metals, where momentum has suddenly halted after gold's price had roughly doubled in just 12 months, the AP reports. Gold briefly dropped below $4,500 per ounce in the overnight hours, down more than $1,000 from its high point reached just last week. It then climbed back above $4,800 before settling at $4,652.60, down 1.9% from Friday. Silver's price has been on an even wilder ride recently, and it swung from a 9% loss overnight to a modest gain and back to a loss of 1.9%.

Stocks of companies that make computer storage helped lead the stock market, adding to gains from last week following several profit reports that topped analysts' expectations. Sandisk leaped 15.4% to lead the S&P 500. The data-storage company added to its 6.9% gain from Friday, after it reported stronger profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. It credited demand created by the artificial-intelligence boom, among other things. That helped offset a 2.9% drop for Nvidia, whose chips are powering much of the world's move into AI technology. The losses were worse in Asia, where AI winners plunged. South Korea's Kospi fell 5.3% from its record for its worst day in almost 10 months after chip company SK Hynix lost nearly 9%.

The Walt Disney Co. fell 7.4% even though the entertainment giant reported a stronger profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. It warned of challenges keeping international visitors away from its US theme parks, among other things. Oil prices dropped more than 4% after Trump told reporters that Iran is "seriously talking to us." It's a potential signal of improving relations between the two countries, which could keep oil flowing easily around the world. The drop in oil prices could mean less painful fuel bills for airlines and cruise ships. That helped Carnival steam 8.1% higher, and United Airlines climb 4.9%.

Gold and silver prices had been surging as investors looked for safer things to own amid a wide range of worries, including a Federal Reserve that may be set to become less independent, a US stock market that critics say is too expensive, threats of tariffs, and heavy debt loads for governments worldwide. Their prices cratered on Friday, including a 31.4% plunge for silver. Some on Wall Street saw it as a result of President Trump's nomination of Kevin Warsh as the next chair of the Fed.

• Warsh's reputation as a former Fed governor may have raised expectations among some investors that he may keep interest rates high to fight inflation, which would reduce the need to hide out in gold and silver for protection. But many on Wall Street are also skeptical of that initial reading and say the expectation from Trump is likely that Warsh will cut interest rates, something the president has been demanding. That could give the economy a boost but also worsen inflation over the long term.