Root and Head's batting mastery highlights Day 2 of 5th Ashes test

SYDNEY (AP) — Joe Root posted his second hundred of the series for England and Travis Head closed in on his third for Australia as Day 2 of the final Ashes test closed evenly poised on Monday.

England was bowled out just before tea for 364 at the Sydney Cricket Ground, with Root leading with a masterful 160 for his best test score in Australia from his four Ashes tours.

At stumps, Australia was 166-2 in reply with Head again in imperious form as he slashed his way to 91 not out from 87 balls.

Ben Stokes took both wickets for England, which struggled to stem the flow of runs in the evening session before the wicket of the well-set Marnus Labuschagne late in the day.

Root showed all the composure of a 163-test veteran as he notched his 41st century off 146 balls, with 11 boundaries and celebrated with the same shrug gesture as when he broke through for his first hundred in four Ashes tours at Brisbane last month.

Australia retained the Ashes with wins in the first three tests, but England is coming off a drought-breaking win in the fourth test at Melbourne last week.

“I just felt like we’ve had some amazing support throughout this series and we’ve not been able to achieve what we set out to as a group, but at no point has that (support) ever wavered,” Root said. The celebration "is a way of saying thankyou.”

Root’s innings finally ended when he popped a return catch to Michael Neser, who dived across the pitch to grasp the ball just inches above the ground.

While his disappointment was evident as he walked from the field, he received a standing ovation from the near-capacity Sydney Cricket Ground in what may be his last tour of a country that had provided his greatest batting challenge.

Root is now level with former Australia captain Ricky Ponting on the all-time list of test centurymakers. Only Sachin Tendulker (51) and Jacques Kallis (45) have more.

Scott Boland and Mitchell Starc made early breakthroughs Monday after Root and Harry Brook’s partnership had moved to 169 runs and was threatening to take the test away from the hosts.

Boland (2-85) ended Brook’s equal parts streaky and sublime innings at 84, with Steve Smith taking a sharp catch to bring to a close the best partnership of the series across both teams.

Starc (2-93) removed England skipper Stokes (0) for the fifth time this series with a near unplayable delivery that shaped away from the left-hander which took a thin edge on its way through to Alex Carey.

Jamie Smith made an enterprising, and at times fortunate, 46 before he holed-out to the part-time medium pace of Labuschagne.

Root and Jacks then combined for 54-run partnership before Neser's (4-60) three quick strikes wrapped up the innings.

Australia's innings got off to a fast start with Head and Jake Weatherald raising 50 in just the 10th over.

Stokes (2-30) entered the attack to stem the runs and soon had Weatherald (21) trapped lbw to have Australia at 57-1.

Head continued the attack and raised his 50 from 55 balls and soon after passed 500 runs for the series, at a strike rate above 87.

“Every ball he (Head) is looking to score,” Neser said. “He is not trying to work it around or grind it out. And most times he creates more opportunities than normal batters, because he is so talented.”

Labuschagne also found form and with Head plundered a 105-run partnership in quick time.

In the fading light, Labuschagne and Stokes had a verbal exchange across several overs with the England captain showing and voicing his displeasure at the Australian's delaying tactics.

Stokes eventually had Labuschagne (48) caught at gully and Australia was 162-2.

Neser went in as nightwatchman for 15 minutes and took a painful blow on the elbow in the final over.

AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket

Australia's Marnus Labuschagne reacts after he was dismissed during play on day two of the fifth and final Ashes cricket test between England and Australia in Sydney, Monday, Jan. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Mark Baker)

Australia's Marnus Labuschagne reacts after he was dismissed during play on day two of the fifth and final Ashes cricket test between England and Australia in Sydney, Monday, Jan. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Mark Baker)

Australia's Travis Head bats during play on day two of the fifth and final Ashes cricket test between England and Australia in Sydney, Monday, Jan. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Mark Baker)

Australia's captain Steve Smith, left, talks to teammate Mitchell Starc during play on day two of the fifth and final Ashes cricket test between England and Australia in Sydney, Monday, Jan. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Mark Baker)

England's Josh Tongue is out bowled during play on day two of the fifth and final Ashes cricket test between England and Australia in Sydney, Monday, Jan. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Mark Baker)

England's Joe Root celebrates after scoring a century during play on day two of the fifth and final Ashes cricket test between England and Australia in Sydney, Monday, Jan. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Mark Baker)

Australia's Michael Neser celebrates after dismissing England's Joe Root during play on day two of the fifth and final Ashes cricket test between England and Australia in Sydney, Monday, Jan. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Mark Baker)

England's Joe Root reacts after scoring 150 runs during play on day two of the fifth and final Ashes cricket test between England and Australia in Sydney, Monday, Jan. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Mark Baker)

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks gained ground on Wall Street Monday to kick off their first full week of the new year.

The gains were broad, with particularly big jumps for energy companies and banks. Elsewhere, industrial companies and retailers joined in to help boost major indexes.

The S&P 500 rose 43.58 points, or 0.6%, to 6,902.05. The benchmark index is just below its record set in late December. The Dow Jones Industrial Average set a record, rising 594.79 points, or 1.2%, to 48,977.18.

The Nasdaq composite rose 160.19 points, or 0.7%, to 23,395.82.

Smaller company stocks had a particularly strong day, outpacing other indexes, in a sign of broader investor confidence. The Russell 2000 rose 1.6%.

Markets in Europe also gained ground.

Energy companies and the oil market were a key focus after U.S. forces captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in a weekend raid. The price of U.S. crude jumped 1.7% to $58.32 per barrel. The price of Brent crude, the international standard, rose 1.7% to $61.76 per barrel.

President Donald Trump has floated a plan for U.S. oil companies to help rebuild Venezuela’s oil industry. Chevron jumped 5.1%, Exxon Mobil rose 2.2% and Halliburton surged 7.8% for some of the strongest gains in the market.

After years of neglect and international sanctions, Venezuela’s oil industry is in disrepair. It could take years and major investments before production can increase dramatically. But some analysts expect its current output of about 1.1 million barrels a day could double or triple fairly quickly.

Big banks also made solid gains. JPMorgan Chase rose 2.6% and Bank of America jumped 1.7%.

Wall Street is also watching the technology sector as the industry kicks off its annual CES trade show in Las Vegas. Nvidia fell 0.4% and Applied Materials jumped 5.7%.

Investors are particularly focused on advancements in artificial intelligence, or AI. The sector led the broader market to a series of records in 2025 on expectations that AI will continue to drive advancements and profits for a wide range of technology companies. The latest updates on AI from influential technology companies could help shed more light on whether the big investments are worth the potential financial risks.

Companies like Nvidia have been heavily investing in the technology, while investors on Wall Street have made those companies among the most valuable in the world. Their outsized valuations now drive much of the movement for major indexes, including the record run for major indexes in 2025.

The broader market is poised to gain even more ground as last year's momentum continues with growing corporate earnings and several other factors, according to Mark Hackett, chief market strategist at Nationwide.

“The market’s broad, confident and consistent march upward, and the absence of emotion-based selling, tells you we’re starting the year on pretty solid footing,” Hackett wrote, in a note to investors.

Gold gained 2.8% and the price of silver soared 7.9%. Such assets are often considered safe havens in times of geopolitical turmoil. The metals have notched record prices over the last year amid lingering economic concerns brought on by conflicts and trade wars.

Bitcoin rose to its highest level since mid-November, hitting $94,700. Coinbase jumped 7.8% and Robinhood Markets jumped 7% for two of the markets biggest gains.

Treasury yields fell in the bond market. The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 4.15% from 4.19% late Friday. The yield on the two-year Treasury, which moves more closely with expectations for what the Federal Reserve will do, fell to 3.45% from 3.48% late Friday.

Wall Street will get several economic updates this week that will also be watched by the Fed as it determines interest rate policy.

On Monday, the Institute for Supply Management released its manufacturing index for December showing the sector continued shrinking. More importantly, the business group will release its December report on the services sector on Wednesday. The services sector makes up the bulk of the U.S. economy and it grew, even if only slightly, throughout most of 2025.

Reports on the job market later this week, which include updates for job openings and overall employment, will be a bigger focus for the Fed. The central bank has been weighing a slowing job market against risks for rising inflation as it decides whether to cut interest rates. It cut its benchmark rate three times late in 2025, but inflation has remained above its 2% target and that has made the Fed more cautious.

Wall Street still expects the Fed to hold rates steady at its upcoming meeting later in January.

AP business writer Elaine Kurtenbach and AP video journalist Mayuko Ono contributed to this report.

Trader Thomas McCauley, foreground, and a colleague work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Friday, Jan. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)

Yoshinobu Tsutsui, the head of Keidanren, Japan's major business federation, holds a wooden mallet to ring the bell during a ceremony marking the start of trading at the Tokyo Stock Exchange, Monday, Jan. 5, 2026, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

Staff of the Tokyo Stock Exchange and guests make a ceremonial hand-clapping during a ceremony marking the start of trading at the Tokyo Stock Exchange, Monday, Jan. 5, 2026, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama rings the bell during a ceremony marking the start of trading at the Tokyo Stock Exchange, Monday, Jan. 5, 2026, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

A board above the trading floor of the New York Stock Exchange displays the closing number for the Dow Jones industrial average Friday, Jan. 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)

A dealer watches computer monitors at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, Jan. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

A dealer walks past near the screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, Jan. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)