Trade hopes lift stocks but Boeing slumps

Wall Street got a boost Monday on talk from the White House that there was progress toward resolving the 15-month trade war with China.

The Dow and the S&P posted modest gains. The Nasdaq was the leader of the pack - gaining almost a percent on the day.

Boeing was hard hit. Multiple Wall Street firms downgraded the stock after leaked messages from a former test pilot were made public last week. The messages cast doubt on the safety of the 737 MAX years before it was approved to fly, and then involved in two deadly crashes. Trying to limit the fallout, Boeing's CEO Monday sent out an internal memo telling employees the company was making steady progress on getting the money-maker back into the air. Investors, however, fear an even longer road ahead and dumped the stock.

Halliburton kicked-off what will be the busiest week so far this earnings season by announcing cost cuts. Amy Kong of Fiduciary Trust International says she'll be paying attention to multinationals and manufacturing companies to judge how corporate reporting season is faring.

SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH) AMY KONG, SENIOR PORTFOLIO MANAGER AND MANAGING DIRECTOR, FIDUCIARY TRUST INTERNATIONAL, SAYING:

"Those sectors could be particularly harder hit than others that have been able to control expenses or be able to buyback shares and to other capital allegation strategies, to again, offset earnings. I think to your point, some of the industrials are definitely worth watching especially since the last earnings season they haven't done as well and especially to your point, a lot of them do have the ties to China."

AmerisourceBergen, Cardinal Health, McKesson Corp and Teva Pharmaceuticals reached a last-minute settlement with the state of Ohio to avoid the first federal trial into their role in the opioid crisis. Shares of those companies dropped after the $260 million settlement.