Dow Stays Hot, Adds 210 Points For Record Close

Stocks extended their winning ways into a new week today. The Dow picked up a fourth-straight win, thanks to another triple-digit pop and record close. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq, also finished confidently in the black, the former falling just short of its own record finish.

Small caps continue their resurgence as well, with the Russell 2000 (RUT) adding nearly 2% today. Wall Street got a jolt of optimism when Goldman Sach's top economist Jan Hatzius outlined a case for interest rate cuts ahead of July's Federal Reserve meeting. 

Continue reading for more on today's market, including:

• Protective puts could help ease earnings uncertainty.
• Homebuilding stock has room to run. 
• Plus, TSLA bulls grow; Blackrock earnings disappoint; and CLF slumps.

5 Things to Know Today 

1. Former President Donald Trump taps J.D. Vance as running mate. (MarketWatch)
2. Cryptocurrency Ethereum (ETH) is getting closer to Bitcoin (BTC). (Bloomberg)
3. Tesla bulls are enjoying the ride. 
4. No post-earnings pop for BlackRock stock today.
5. Cleveland-Cliffs shakes up the steel sector.

Gold Back on Track as Political Uncertainty Swirls

Oil prices slipped again today, with demand taking a hit after the lackluster data out of China.  August-dated West Intermediate (WTI) crude shed 30 cents, or 0.4%, to settle at $81.91 per barrel.

Gold prices rose today, the safe-haven asset capitalizing on the political uncertainty of the assassination attempt on former President Trump.  August-dated gold futures added $8.20, 0.3% to settle at $2,428.90 an ounce for the day.