NEW YORK, New York - U.S. equities posted modest gains on Monday, though trading remained cautious as investors tracked negotiations aimed at ending the conflict in Iran. Uncertainty over the direction of the war kept volumes in check and limited upside moves.

The Standard and Poor's 500 closed at 6,612.02, adding 29.33 points, or 0.45 percent. Trading volume on the index reached 2.29 billion shares.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished at 46,669.88, up 165.21 points, a gain of 0.36 percent. Volume totaled 334.544 million shares.

The NASDAQ Composite ended the session at 21,996.34, rising 117.16 points, or 0.54 percent. Volume came in at 6.729 billion shares.

Market participants described the day's price action as restrained, with many opting to stay on the sidelines until there is greater clarity on the outcome of diplomatic efforts to halt the fighting in Iran. Any sign of progress or breakdown in negotiations could trigger sharper moves in the sessions ahead, analysts said.

Monday Foreign Exchange Wrap: Dollar Weakens as Euro, Pound Gain Ground

Currency markets on Monday saw modest but broad-based gains, with the U.S. dollar weakening against most major counterparts as trading remained relatively subdued due to holiday closures in several global financial centers.

The euro advanced against the greenback, with the EUR/USD pair closing at 1.1543, a gain of 0.27 percent.

Going against the tend, the U.S. dollar edged higher versus the Japanese yen, with USD/JPY finishing at 159.66, up 0.10 percent.

Against the Canadian dollar, the U.S. dollar softened. USD/CAD ended the session at 1.3915, declining 0.13 percent.

Sterling posted a solid advance. GBP/USD traded at 1.3235, rising 0.38 percent.

The Swiss franc continued to strengthen against the dollar. USD/CHF settled at 0.7981, falling 0.16 percent.

Commodity currencies outperformed on Monday. The Australian dollar rose versus its U.S. counterpart, with AUD/USD at 0.6920, adding 0.58 percent. The New Zealand dollar climbed even further, with NZD/USD at 0.5714, gaining 0.61 percent.

Traders noted that thin liquidity, due to the Easter holiday in many markets and the Qingming Festival in parts of Asia, may have amplified some of the intraday swings. 

Monday's Global Market Wrap: Stocks Mixed as Holiday Closures Thin Trading Volume

Australian, New Zealand, Markets in China and Taiwan were closed for the Qingming Festival.Monday Market Wrap: Mixed Closes as Holiday Closures Thin Trading Volume 

Most global markets remained closed on Monday for the Easter holiday, while exchanges in China and Taiwan were shuttered for the Qingming Festival. Among the few indices that traded, Asian and emerging markets delivered a mixed performance, with several, including Israel, posting solid gains.

In Canada theS&P/TSX Composite Indexclosed at 33,181.97, adding 73.75 points, or 0.22 percent, on volume of 278.952 million shares.

Singapore's STI Index edged higher, closing at 4,972.40, up 24.90 points, a gain of 0.50 percent.

In India the S&P BSE SENSEX rallied sharply, ending the session at 74,106.85, adding 787.30 points, or 1.07 percent.

Indonesia's IDX Composite bucked the trend, falling 37.36 points to finish at 6,989.43, a decline of 0.53 percent.

In Malaysia the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI also lost ground, closing at 1,680.83, down 14.67 points, or 0.87 percent.

South Korea's KOSPI Composite Index jumped 73.03 points to end at 5,450.33, a gain of 1.36 percent.

In Israel the TA-125 advanced 48.73 points to settle at 4,156.65, rising 1.19 percent.

Egypt's EGX 30 Price Return Index climbed 375.20 points to close at 47,651.60, an increase of 0.79 percent, with volume of 392.056 million shares traded.

In Japan the Nikkei 225 added 290.19 points to finish at 53,413.68, a gain of 0.55 percent.

Trading volumes were generally light due to the widespread holiday closures across Europe, the Americas, and parts of Asia. Investors now look ahead to a fuller slate of economic data and corporate earnings later in the week 

(This report incorporates quotes retrieved with the assistance of artificial intelligence).

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