OFF THE WIRE

Copper prices fell on Monday as rising inventories and the end of a strike at a major Chilean mine eased supply concerns.Benchmark three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange was down 0.4% at $14,342 a metric ton by 1600 GMT.Available copper stocks in LME-registered warehouses rose to a two-month high of 147,450 tons after 8,225 tons of inflows into US warehouses, daily exchange data showed.

TORONTO, Oct 19 (Reuters) - The Canadian dollar held on to much of its gains against the US dollar on Monday as hawkish comments by Bank of ​Canada Governor Tiff Macklem overshadowed domestic inflation data, while investors awaited ‌the outcome of a referendum in Alberta.

Oct 19 (Reuters) - The benchmark S&P 500 ​and the Nasdaq Composite gained on Monday, as AI-related stocks rebounded from last week's sharp selloff, with ‌easing oil prices providing additional support ahead of key earnings reports this week.Both indexes had posted their biggest weekly drop since late June on Friday, as concerns that higher interest rates could curb investments in AI infrastructure weighed on technology stocks, particularly data center operators.

By Promit Mukherjee and David Ljunggren

WASHINGTON, Oct 19 (Reuters) - US homebuilder sentiment plunged to the lowest level in nearly 14-1/2 years in October as the Middle East conflict boosted mortgage rates and prices of energy-related building materials, a survey showed ​on Monday.