Financial Markets                      12/02 09:36

   

   NEW YORK (AP) -- U.S. stocks are kicking off December by drifting around 
their record heights on Monday.

   The S&P 500 rose 0.1% in morning trading after closing its best month of the 
year at an all-time high. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 183 points, 
or 0.4%, as of 10:05 a.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was 0.8% 
higher.

   Super Micro Computer, a stock that's been on an AI-driven roller coaster, 
soared 15% to help lead the market.

   Following accusations of misconduct and the resignation of its public 
auditor, the maker of servers used in artificial-intelligence technology said 
an investigation found no evidence of misconduct by its management or by the 
board. It also said it doesn't expect to restate its past financials and that 
it will find a new chief financial officer, appoint a general counsel and make 
other moves to strengthen its governance.

   Intel rose 2.5% after it said CEO Pat Gelsinger has retired and stepped down 
from the board. The chip company said it's looking for Gelsinger's replacement, 
and Intel's chair of the board said it's "committed to restoring investor 
confidence."

   Stellantis, meanwhile, skidded following the announcement of its CEO's 
departure. The U.S.-traded stock of the world's fourth-largest automaker fell 
7.4%. Carlos Tavares steps down after nearly four years in the top spot of the 
automaker, which owns car brands like Jeep, Citron and Ram, amid an ongoing 
struggle with slumping sales and an inventory backlog at dealerships.

   Utility PG&E had the biggest drop in the S&P 500, 5.3%, after saying it 
would sell $2.4 billion of stock and preferred shares to raise cash.

   Retailers were mixed amid what's expected to be the best Cyber Monday on 
record. Target, which recently gave a forecast for the holiday season that left 
investors discouraged, fell 3.2%. Walmart, which gave a more optimistic 
forecast, added 0.1%.

   Amazon, which looks to benefit from online sales from Cyber Monday, rose 
2.1%.

   The stock market seemed to be taking Donald Trump's latest threat on tariffs 
in stride. The president-elect on Saturday threatened 100% tariffs against a 
group of developing economies if they act to undermine the U.S. dollar. Trump 
said he wants the group, headlined by Brazil, Russia, India and China, to 
promise it won't create a new currency or otherwise try to undercut the U.S. 
dollar.

   The dollar has long been the currency of choice for global trade. 
Speculation has also been around a long time that other currencies could knock 
it off its mantle, but no contender has come close.

   The U.S. dollar's value rose Monday against several other currencies, but 
one of its strongest moves likely had less to do with the tariff threats. The 
euro fell amid a political battle in Paris over the French government's budget. 
The euro sank 0.9% against the U.S. dollar and broke below $1.05.

   In the bond market, Treasury yields rose and held onto their gains after a 
report showed the U.S. manufacturing sector is doing slightly better than 
feared. Manufacturing contracted again last month, but not by as much as 
economists expected, according to the Institute for Supply Management.

   The yield on the 10-year Treasury climbed to 4.23% from 4.18% late Friday.

   This upcoming week will have several highly anticipated updates on the job 
market, including the October job openings report, weekly unemployment benefits 
data and the all-important November jobs report.

   Elsewhere, Chinese stocks led gains worldwide as monthly surveys showed 
improving conditions for manufacturing, partly driven by a surge in orders 
ahead of Trump's inauguration next month.

   Both official and private sector surveys of factory managers showed strong 
new orders and export orders, possibly partly linked to efforts by importers in 
the U.S. to beat potential tariff hikes by Trump once he takes office.

   Indexes rose 0.7% in Hong Kong and 1.1% in Shanghai, but South Korea's Kospi 
slipped 0.1%.

   In Europe, France's CAC 40 fell 0.2%, while Germany's DAX returned 1%.

   ___

   AP Business Writers Matt Ott and Elaine Kurtenbach contributed.

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