S&P 500, Dow book 3rd day of gains Monday, stocks end higher as investors await Russia-Ukraine talks

U.S. stocks finished higher Monday, with the S&P 500 index and Dow industrials both booking a third straight session of gains as investors monitored potentially positive developments ahead of Russia and Ukraine talks in Turkey on Tuesday. The Financial Times reported on Monday that Russia no longer will demand that Ukraine be “denazified,” a claim Russian President Vladimir Putin used to justify his invasion, in ceasefire talks. The Dow DJIA, +0.27% rose about 93 points, or 0.3%, finishing near 34,955, after flipping positive in late afternoon trade. The S&P 500 SPX, +0.71% advanced 0.7% and the Nasdaq Composite Index COMP, +1.31% jumped 1.3%. Treasury yields also trimmed some of last week’s advance and oil prices fell, with the U.S. benchmark CL00, -9.14% down about 7% Monday to settle at $105.96 a barrel.