The S&P 500 underwent a period of ups and downs throughout the week, hitting a weekly low of 4,156 on Wednesday, but recovering some of its losses by Friday. The fluctuations were largely influenced by the uncertainty surrounding the debt ceiling.
However, there was optimism that a debt ceiling deal would be reached between President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, with both parties voicing a collaborative spirit and confidence that a default would be avoided. At the time of writing, a deal had not yet been reached.
FactSet data indicates that the consumer discretionary sector is currently the fastest-growing sector within the S&P 500, although overall earnings dropped by 2.2% year-over-year for a second consecutive year in the stock market index.
Minutes released from the latest FOMC meeting revealed that Fed officials are almost unanimously in favor of a tightening policy to combat inflation.
Nvidia Emerges as the Leader in AI Technology: Nvidia NVDA, a technology developer and manufacturer, became the talk of the town this week as their quarterly earnings call solidified their position as a leading provider of the infrastructure necessary for the development and use of artificial intelligence. As a result, Nvidia’s stock prices surged, gaining more than 23% on a weekly basis by Friday afternoon.
What to Look Out For: Upcoming data on the U.S. job market, with reports on job openings for April and the May jobs report expected next week on Wednesday and Friday, respectively. Additionally, tech giants Hewlett Packard HPQ and Dell DELL will be releasing their earnings next week on Tuesday and Thursday, respectively.
On Tuesday, The Conference Board Think Tank will release their U.S. consumer confidence report, while Lululemon LULU, Macy’s M, and Dollar General DG will issue their quarterly reports on Thursday, providing insight into consumer spending.
Benzinga is a Detroit-based financial news and data company.
