NEW YORK, July 14 (Xinhua) -- U.S. stocks rose modestly on Monday, as investors braced for the unofficial start of second-quarter earnings season, while renewed trade tensions added uncertainty.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 88.14 points, or 0.20 percent, to close at 44,459.65. The S&P 500 advanced 8.81 points, or 0.14 percent, to 6,268.56. The Nasdaq Composite climbed 54.80 points, or 0.27 percent, to finish at 20,640.33, a new record close.

Seven of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors ended in green, with communication services and financials leading the gainers by rising 0.73 percent and 0.67 percent, respectively. Meanwhile, energy and materials led the laggards by going down 1.2 percent and 0.44 percent, respectively.

Market participants remain focused on escalating tariff threats after U.S. President Donald Trump announced over the weekend that the United States will implement 30 percent tariffs on imports from the European Union and Mexico starting Aug. 1. Officials from the EU and Mexico said they would continue talks with Washington in the coming weeks in hopes of securing reduced rates.

The tariff developments arrive ahead of the June Consumer Price Index report, due later this week. Investors are watching closely for signs that previous tariffs have begun to push up prices, which could influence the Federal Reserve's interest rate decision expected in just over two weeks.

Separately, Trump on Monday heightened tensions with Russia, threatening to impose so-called "secondary" tariffs of about 100 percent and pledging additional U.S. military support for Ukraine.

In bond markets, the U.S. 10-year Treasury yield edged up to 4.43 percent from 4.42 percent on Friday. The 30-year yield rose 1.4 basis points to 4.971 percent, its highest level since June 3.

Wall Street also looked ahead to earnings from major U.S. banks, set to begin Tuesday, as well as increased activity in IPO and M&A markets.

"The big question for markets in the coming weeks is if earnings, which are expected to be solid, can overshadow the tariff issues that are still there in the background," said Glen Smith, chief investment officer of Texas-based GDS Wealth Management. "So far, the market has been able to withstand tariff headlines and is more focused on earnings and economic resiliency."

Among the largest technology firms, Alphabet and Tesla each rose about 1 percent on Monday. Amazon, Meta Platforms and Broadcom posted modest gains, while Apple slid 1.2 percent. Nvidia, which recently became the first company to top 4 trillion U.S. dollars in market value, slipped 0.52 percent, and Microsoft dipped slightly.

RBC Capital Markets has raised its year-end target for the S&P 500 to 6,250, but it still warns about the tariffs.

"Our price target essentially goes back to where it was in mid-March when we took our forecast down from 6,600 to 6,200," wrote Lori Calvasina, RBC's head of U.S. equity strategy, in a note dated July 13. "It's too early to stop worrying about tariff impacts," she wrote.