Stock market today: Dow closes at a record as market bets on Trump after assassination attempt

Investors betting on a second Trump presidency expect an easier regulatory environment and more corporate M&A activity.

• US stocks hit records on Monday with the Dow Jones closing at all-time highs.
• The stock market surge follows a failed assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump over the weekend.
• Investors bet that the tragic attempt on Trump's life will help hand him to the Presidency once again in November.

US stocks hit new all-time highs on Monday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average closing at a record.

The gains came two days after the failed assassination attempt of former President Donald Trump at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.

Investors laid bets that the attempt on Trump's life would help put him in the White House in 2025.

That sentiment was on display in several trades during Monday's session.

Solar stocks plunged, while shares of Trump Media & Technology Group surged more than 30%.

Bitcoin also jumped 9% since the assassination attempt. Trump has fully endorsed bitcoin as he seeks to shore up support, and he's scheduled to headline the Bitcoin Conference in Nashville, Tennessee later this month.

"It's a mildly positive reaction from the markets, as we'll have a less repressive regulatory environment and you'll see companies more likely to engage in M&A," Bespoke co-founder Paul Hickey told CNBC on Monday about a potential Trump win in November.

Meanwhile, long-term bond yields rose on the prospects of higher inflation and expanding fiscal policy under a potential second Trump Presidency, with the 30-year US Treasury yield rising above the 2-year US Treasury yield for the first time since January.

Here's where US indexes stood at the 4:00 p.m. closing bell on Monday:

• S&P 500: 5,631.22, up 0.28%
• Dow Jones Industrial Average: 40,211.72, up 0.53% (+210.82 points)
• Nasdaq composite: 18,472.57, up 0.4%

Here's what else happened today:

• These four charts explain why Fundstrat's Tom Lee expects a triple in the stock market by 2030.
• Here are Wall Street's updated predictions for where the stock market goes between now and the end of the year.
• The soaring power demand for AI technologies is pushing America's power grid to its limit.
• Former President Donald Trump officially became the Republican presidential nominee for the third straight time.
• Trump selected JD Vance to be his running mate for Vice President in the upcoming November election.

In commodities, bonds, and crypto:

• West Texas Intermediate crude oil dropped 0.28% to $81.98 a barrel. Brent crude, the international benchmark, was down 0.15% to $84.90 a barrel.
• Gold gained 0.29% to $2,427.60 per ounce.
• The 10-year Treasury yield increased three basis points to 4.22%.
• Bitcoin increased 4.26% to $63,408.