The New York Stock Exchange closed mostly higher on Monday, 19 October, driven by a rebound in technology stocks following the losses recorded in the previous week.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq rose 1.11%, while the broad-based S&P 500 gained 0.41%. By contrast, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which tracks large US blue-chip companies, closed virtually flat, edging down 0.07%.

"You could call it a recovery after a somewhat excessive selling phase," said Art Hogan of B. Riley Wealth Management, in comments to AFP.

Last week, investors sold off shares in artificial intelligence (AI)-linked companies en masse, amid concerns over what many viewed as stretched valuations, high debt levels, and the threat of intensifying Chinese competition. As a result, the Nasdaq posted a weekly decline of 4.5%.

On Monday's session, however, "tech bounced back — investors were drawn in by more attractive valuations," said José Torres of Interactive Brokers.

Nvidia, the world's largest company by market capitalisation, rose 1.38%, joined by other semiconductor names including Broadcom (+1.78%), Advanced Micro Devices (+1.76%), Intel (+2.43%), and Marvell Technology (+4.06%).

Moving in the opposite direction, CoreWeave — which has been at the centre of investor concerns — slipped 0.44%, having shed roughly a quarter of its value over the previous week. The company's elevated debt load, taken on to finance the construction of data centres, continues to unsettle markets, particularly in an environment of elevated interest rates.

At around 22:25 Maputo time, the yield on 10-year US Treasury bonds stood at 5.14%, up from the 5.07% recorded at the close of last Friday's session and above levels seen prior to the conflict with Iran.

In the days ahead, investor attention will remain firmly on AI, with earnings due from SpaceX, Meta, Tesla, and Western Digital. Those results are expected to shed further light on the pace of investment in AI development and its profitability, ahead of upcoming earnings releases from Nvidia, Alphabet, and Amazon.

"The third-quarter earnings season, which is only just getting under way, is hitting the ground running," said Sam Stovall of CFRA. His analysis suggests that the majority of companies that have already reported results have beaten market expectations.