S&P 500 futures inched higher Sunday night as the broad index came off its best week in several months. Traders are looking ahead to a week with more corporate earnings, key labour data and a Federal Reserve meeting.
Stocks have momentum after the three major indexes all gained last week. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite each saw their best weeks since November. The S&P 500 climbed 2.7%, ending a three-week down streak. The Nasdaq popped 4.2%, marking its first positive week of the last five. Meanwhile, the Dow rose 0.7%.
Those moves follow a positive — albeit rocky — week on Wall Street.
“The YTD upgrade in the market’s pricing of economic growth largely explains the resilience in equities this year alongside the climb higher in interest rates,” CNBC quoted David Kostin, Goldman Sachs’ chief U.S. equity strategist, wrote to clients. “However, during the past few weeks, the driver of rates has shifted from better growth to hawkish monetary policy concerns, which has been more difficult for stocks to digest.”
Earnings season continues this week, with releases from major names including McDonald’s, Coca-Cola, Apple and Amazon. It’s shaping up to be a strong quarter: Of the more than 45% S&P 500-listed firms that have posted results so far, about four out of every five have surpassed expectations, according to FactSet.
Monetary policy will take centre stage later in the week, with the Fed set to release its latest interest rate announcement on Wednesday. While the central bank is widely anticipated to keep the borrowing cost unchanged, investors will still closely monitor the post-announcement press conference with Chair Jerome Powell.
That announcement comes ahead of April’s nonfarm payrolls report expected Friday. Traders analyse the data for insights into the strength of the labour market given its role in the monetary policy decision making process and the country’s broader economic health.
