The S&P 500 rose Monday, as traders looked to build on the sharp gains seen last week following the Federal Reserve’s interest rate cut.

The broad market index added 0.1%, while the Nasdaq Composite hovered near the flatline. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 33 points, or 0.08%. The S&P 500 energy sector advanced more than 1%.

The moves come after a winning week on Wall Street that centered around the Federal Reserve’s decision to lower interest rates by 50 basis points, its first cut in four years. Despite some choppiness following the initial announcement, stocks rallied in the days following.

The Dow ended Friday at an all-time high close, which was notably above 42,000. All three of the major indexes added more than 1% for the week, during which the S&P 500 also reached new records.

Investors parsed fresh economic data on Monday, including a 15-month low reading for PMI manufacturing activity in the U.S. for August.

To be sure, stocks still will remain especially vigilant toward any economic data that could push back against hopes for a soft landing, according to Thornburg Investment Management portfolio manager Brian Burrell.

“We’re entering a period where there will be election risk, and the Fed will be looking at the data, particularly labor markets, as we see softening especially in the lower end of the U.S.,” Burrell said. “There’s going to be a balance of the easing of financial conditions with the rate cuts that we’re seeing with the softening labor market.”

Asia-Pacific markets mostly rose Monday as investors digested monetary policy decisions from Japan and China as well as the U.S. Federal Reserve’s sharp rate cut last week.

Data last Friday showed China’s youth unemployment rate rose for a second straight month to its highest level this year, according to the National Bureau of Statistics, as the labor market cools down amid a weakening economy.

Despite growing calls for lower interest rates, the People’s Bank of China on Friday unexpectedly left its key benchmark rates on hold.

China’s central bank supplied 234.6 billion yuan ($33.29 billion) to the banking system through open market operations, according to a statement on Monday, in a move to “maintain reasonably sufficient liquidity in the banking system at the end of quarter.” It also lowered the 14-day reverse repo rate to 1.85% from 1.95% set in the previous funding operation in February.

Separately, the U.S. is reportedly mulling a ban on importing and selling cars from China that carry software and hardware for communications or autonomous driving systems.

The Bank of Japan also kept its benchmark interest rate steady at around 0.25% on Friday. Japan’s authorities were closely watching the markets for signs of any rebuild of yen carry trades which could heighten market volatility, Japan’s top currency diplomat Atsushi Mimura said.

Markets in Japan were closed Monday for a public holiday, but futures contract tied to the Nikkei 225 in Chicago were trading at 38,375, compared to the index Friday close of 37,723.91.

The Japanese yen strengthened 0.18% to 143.64.

The Reserve Bank of Australia starts its two-day policy meeting on Monday, where central bankers will decide on the country’s monetary policy path on Tuesday. Analysts expect the RBA to keep benchmark interest rate steady at 4.35%, with focus on whether the central bank will veer away from its hawkish stance, after the Fed kicked off an easing cycle with a bold 50-basis-points rate cut.

Singapore’s headline and core inflation both rose more than expected in August, up 2.2% and 2.7% year on year, respectively.

The overall CPI was higher than the forecast of 2.15% in a Reuters poll but cooler than 2.4% in the previous month. The core CPI, which strips out accommodation and private transport, was higher than the 2.6% forecast and 2.5% in July.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.69% to close at 8,152.9

In South Korea, the Kospi gained 0.33% to close higher at 2,602.01, while the small-cap Kosdaq gained 0.91% to 755.12.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index was 0.2% lower as of its final hour of trading, while mainland China’s CSI 300 rose 0.37% to close at 3,212.76.

The Taiwan Weighted Index inched up 0.57% to end at 22,285.53.

The three major U.S. indexes notched weekly gains last week, with the S&P 500 advancing 1.36% to mark its fifth positive week over the past six weeks. The Dow Jones Industrial Average concluded the week with 1.62% gains while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite added 1.49%.

On Friday, the 30-stock Dow closed at a record high, gaining 0.09% in the day to 42,063.36. The S&P 500 pulled back 0.19%, ending at 5,702.55, while Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.36% to end at 17,948.32.

—CNBC’s Hakyung Kim and Brian Evans contributed to this report.

U.S. stock futures rose early Thursday as traders digested the Federal Reserve’s earlier decision to lower interest rates by a half percentage point.

Dow Jones Industrial Average futures rose 259 points, or 0.6%. Futures tied to the S&P 500 climbed about 1%, while Nasdaq 100 futures added 1.4%.

The U.S. central bank slashed its overnight lending rate to a range of 4.75% to 5.00% from 5.25% to 5.5% on Wednesday, which came as a surprise to some investors who criticized the size of this initial cut. This is the first rate reduction delivered by the Fed in four years.

After seesawing for most of the afternoon, stocks ultimately closed Wednesday’s session lower. Both the S&P 500 and 30-stock Dow initially rallied to new record highs right after the Fed announced its interest rate cut decision.

Tom Porcelli, chief U.S. economist at PGIM Fixed Income, attributed the market’s Wednesday move lower to Powell’s emphasis that an initial 50 basis point rate cut does not set the precedence for further drastic rate reductions to follow.

“The market was thinking to itself, ‘If you go 50, another 50 has a high likelihood.’ But I think he really dashed that idea to some extent. It’s not that he thinks that’s not going to happen, it’s that he’s not pre-committing to that to happen. That is the right call,” Porcelli said.

Darden Restaurants, shipping giant FedEx and homebuilder Lennar will report their earnings Thursday. Traders will also watch out for August’s existing home sales and the latest weekly jobless claims.

Stock futures were flat Monday evening as Wall Street readied for key retail sales data and the start of the Federal Reserve’s September policy meeting.

Intel shares popped 8% in extended trading after the company said it plans to make its foundry business a subsidiary. Earlier in the day, the Biden administration awarded the company up to $3 billion in funding through the Chips Act.

Futures tied to the S&P 500 hovered near the flatline, along with futures linked to the Dow Jones Industrial Average. Nasdaq-100 futures added 0.1%.

Wall Street is coming off a mixed trading session. The 30-stock Dow rose more than 228 points, or 0.55%, to close at a record high, while the S&P 500 added 0.13%. The Nasdaq Composite lost 0.52% as Apple and prominent chip stocks declined.

Investors on Tuesday will parse retail sales data for August for one final glimpse into the health of the U.S. consumer ahead of the Fed rate decision. Economists polled by Dow Jones are bracing for a 0.2% decline. Excluding autos, they see a 0.2% gain. The results could affect the rate cut outcome.

Wall Street is on standby for the Fed’s long-anticipated rate cut, a move that could help boost earnings growth for companies following a backdrop of steep borrowing costs and high inflation. The Fed first embarked on its aggressive hiking campaign in March 2022.

While Wall Street expects a cut Wednesday, the market is divided on the size of the potential reduction. Traders are currently pricing in a 67% chance that the central bank eases rates by 50 basis points, according to CME Group’s Fed Watch tool. That’s up from a roughly 47% chance Friday.

“Market expectations are split between a 25 basis point and a 50 basis point rate cut, as the decision is complicated by conflicting signals of solid economic activity but a weakening labor market,” said Principal Asset Management’s Seema Shah. “Rarely have market expectations been so torn, so close to a FOMC meeting.”

While a 50 basis point cut isn’t out of the question, the chief global strategist thinks that the Fed should take a more cautious approach to cutting and ease rates by 25 basis points. She is forecasting additional 25 basis point cuts in November and December.

In other economic news, industrial production and manufacturing production data is due out for August, along with September’s National Association of Home Builders Housing Market Index.