Wall Street's main indexes gained on Monday, with the small-cap Russell 2000 index hitting an all-time high as investors cheered Scott Bessent's nomination as Treasury secretary and monitored talks of a ceasefire to the Middle East conflict. President-elect Donald Trump ended weeks of speculation when he named his choice late on Friday, with some investment strategists saying Bessent could take measures to restrain further government borrowing, even as he follows through on fiscal and trade campaign pledges. The small-cap index hit an all-time high of 2,464.90 and was last up 2.4%, eclipsing the high it touched three years ago. Expectations that Trump, along with a Republican Congress, can make good on his promise of lower taxes, import tariff hikes and less rigid regulations have been the latest tailwinds for small-cap companies. Small-caps have been in the spotlight since the U.S. Federal Reserve commenced its monetary policy easing cycle in September.