US stocks start new week in the green as crude dips, Treasury yields ease

Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee, speaking with reporters after an event in London, said that if today's inflation were demand-driven, it would require a more aggressive policy stance, and dismissed the idea of cutting interest rates as means to ease the US debt/deficit burden.

Here's where things stood as of 10:07 EDT.

Frontrunners so far also included communication services .SPLRCL, with an assist from Meta META.O, which was rising 7.5% after Wells Fargo hiked its price target for the stock. Airlines .SPCOMAIR were also off to a good start.

On the other end of the scale, economically sensitive Dow Transports .DJT were off 1%, along with energy .SPNY stocks, down 2%, falling in tandem with crude.

Crude prices touched an 11-day low in advance of the upcoming UN meeting, which could result in diplomatic progress in the Iran war. A partial recovery in Saudi oil shipments also calmed supply jitters.

With war-related energy price pressures morphing into broader, systemic inflation — which has prompted global central banks, including the Fed, to hike interest rates — equity markets have tended to move in opposition to crude since US and Israeli forces attacked Iran February 28, resulting in the closure of the crucial Strait of Hormuz.

Market-moving catalysts were scarce on the first day following Fed week. No economic data to speak of.

Later in the week, Flash PMI, new home sales, durable goods and consumer sentiment will round out a data-light week.