Everything to Know about Macro and Markets
Stocks wrapped up their longest winning run since January, rising for four straight days. The S&P 500 (SPX) surged by 4.59%, increasing by nearly 11% from its April 8 low – which propelled it out of the correction territory. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) ended the week with a gain of 2.48%, while the tech benchmark Nasdaq-100 (NDX) soared by 6.43%.
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Powell Stays Put
The week opened on a sour note as President Trump signaled a potential removal of Fed Chair Jerome Powell, raising worries about the central bank’s independence and the ability of monetary policies to withstand political pressure. Meanwhile, the U.S.-China trade tensions seemed to have reached a boiling point.
Markets rebounded on Tuesday and continued their climb through Friday, as Trump gave assurances that he has no intention of firing Powell, while media reports suggested a potential de-escalation in the China tariff standoff, supporting investor sentiment.
Later in the week, the sentiment was propelled by strong earnings and other positive news from tech leaders, whose strong showings significantly contributed to the overall market performance. The Magnificent Seven cohort surged by nearly 12% on the week, their best performance since January 2023.
Stocks briefly lost steam on Friday as Trump suggested another delay to reciprocal tariffs was unlikely, while also stating that China will have to come forward with a “substantial” offer to see its levies come down. However, U.S. equities wrapped up one of their best weeks of the past decades, with futures flashing green for this week’s opening.
Not the End of It
Markets staged an impressive recovery last week, but another record high doesn’t appear within sight. On the one hand, a younger cohort of investors – whose only brush with the bear has been the pandemic-induced market slide – continue to provide a safety net for stocks, rushing in to buy every dip. Thus, according to Goldman Sachs data, investors have funneled $154 billion into U.S. equities so far this year, marking their best start of the year since 2001. These inflows came despite the tariff fears and the apparent weakening of the U.S. economy, both of which have contributed to nerve-wracking volatility throughout the stock market.
On the other hand, investors don’t seem to be convinced that stocks are out of the woods, massively selling rallies. Last week, the ETF that follows the Nasdaq-100 – Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) – saw its worst investor-funds outflows since November 2024, signaling worries about the sustainability of the newborn rebound. The same pressures that have almost dragged stocks into a bear market – including tariff uncertainty and signs of an economic slowdown amid persistent inflation – continue to depress consumer and investor sentiment.
Stocks That Made the News
▣ Amazon (AMZN) and Nvidia (NVDA) led the tech sector’s surge last week after they dismissed concerns about a slowdown in demand for AI data centers, confirming continued strong demand and expansion plans.
▣ The confirmation of continued data-center buildout supported chip stocks, also boosted by strong rally in STMicroelectronics (STM) and Lam Research (LRCX), which reported better-than-expected earnings results.
▣ Alphabet (GOOGL) saw its stock surge by over 9% on the week after the company reported revenues and earnings that exceeded expectations, driven by its Services and Cloud units. The Google parent also highlighted strong engagement for its new AI offerings, with analysts saying that its early AI investments are beginning to deliver significant returns. Alphabet swept investors with the announcement of a new $70 billion buyback program, one of the largest in the market, and increased its dividend by 5%. These announcements highlighted Alphabet’s resilience amid pressures, strongly contributing to a positive sentiment in the tech sector.
▣ Tesla (TSLA) soared by over 23% despite a mixed earnings report, as investors cheered Elon Musk’s announcement that he plans to reduce his DOGE-dedicated time, shifting his focus back to the EV-maker. In addition, in another bit of positive news for Tesla, the U.S. Department of Transportation announced a national framework for government self-driving cars to help speed up their development.
Upcoming Earnings and Dividend Announcements
The Q1 2025 earnings season is in full swing, with many earnings releases scheduled for the next few days. Among these, the most attention will be drawn to the reports of Microsoft (MSFT) and Meta Platforms (META) on Wednesday and Apple (AAPL) and Amazon (AMZN) on Thursday.
Also in focus this week are the reports of Visa (V), Coca-Cola (KO), Starbucks (SBUX), PayPal (PYPL), Qualcomm (QCOM), Caterpillar (CAT), Robinhood (HOOD), Eli Lilly & Co (LLY), McDonald’s (MCD), and Exxon Mobil (XOM).
Ex-dividend dates are coming this week for Conagra Brands (CAG), Constellation Brands (STZ), Citizens Financial (CFG), Kinder Morgan (KMI), Texas Instruments (TXN), Realty Income (O), Ally Financial (ALLY), and other dividend-paying firms.
For additional exclusive market insights and content from TipRanks Macro & Markets research analyst Yulia Vaiman, click here.