The New York Stock Exchange opened higher on Monday, extending Friday's advance in the wake of oil as investors increasingly clung to the idea of a forthcoming rate cut.

In late morning trading, the Dow Jones index gained 0.2% to 38.756.9 points, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.6% to 16,259.2 points.

Friday's announcement of a weaker-than-expected jobs market eased concerns about a possible rate hike, which some analysts had begun to fear in view of the reawakening of inflation.

These lower-than-expected figures, which follow several very solid months, have even reinforced the thesis that the Fed will have to ease its monetary policy in order to support activity.

Traders now estimate the probability of a rate cut in September at over 48%, compared with 44% a week ago, according to the CME Group's FedWatch barometer.

This pleasant surprise is compounded by a hitherto favorable earnings season, especially in the technology segment.

To date, 80% of S&P 500 companies have published their quarterly results, and 77% of them have posted earnings above analysts' estimates, compared with an average of 74% since 2014.

Reflecting the positive trend, the Nasdaq Composite index is trading within 300 points, or around 1.5%, of its all-time high reached a month ago.

Among the companies yet to publish their quarterly results, US entertainment giant Disney, mobility specialist Uber and chipmaker Arm will announce theirs this week.

Palantir, the predictive AI specialist, climbed 6% a few hours ahead of the publication of its quarterly results, expected later this evening.

The energy sector also supported the share price, posting the biggest sectoral gain of the day with a 1.3% gain, driven by the rebound in oil prices, which saw WTI gain 0.7% to $78.6 a barrel.

This rebound comes after crude oil prices suffered their biggest weekly decline in three months last week, due to uncertainty over demand trends and the easing of tensions in the Middle East, which reduces supply risks.

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