February 16, 2024, Weekly Stock Market Return Recap, by Kip Lytel CFA. After five straight weeks of positive stock moves, the equities took a breather on renewed inflation concerns. The S&P 500 declined 0.4% and the Nasdaq dropped 1.3% on the week, while the Dow finished 0.1% down on the week. A hot Producer Price Index (PPI) number sent jitters among some market watchers, with an unexpected 0.3% January increase. Core PPI, which excludes food, energy, and trade services, jumped 0.6%, its largest increase in a year.
February 3, 2024, Weekly Stock Market Return Recap. Bolstered by robust earnings from tech leaders like Meta and Amazon, the S&P 500 finished the week at a new high, up 1.1% for the week. It is no surprise the tech-ladened Nasdaq outpaced the broad market index, surging 1.7% to another new high as well. Fourth Quarter GDP growth came in surprisingly strong at 3.3%, handily beating economists’ expectations of a 2.0% increase and overshooting the Fed’s own model which predicted a 2.4% growth rate. Consumer spending remained the driving force behind the economic growth. On the week, Fed Chair Powell said the Central Bank isn’t "actively considering moving the federal funds rate down." Powell also voiced rate cut hesitancy by indicating policymakers are waiting to gain "greater confidence" that inflation will remain soft to set up a cut conversation: “We want to see more good data [on inflation]. It is not that the six months of data isn't low enough. It is. But whether we can take that with confidence that we are moving sustainably on to 2% is a question.”
February 3, 2024, Weekly Stock Market Return Recap. Bolstered by robust earnings from tech leaders like Meta and Amazon, the S&P 500 finished the week at a new high, up 1.1% for the week. It is no surprise the tech-ladened Nasdaq outpaced the broad market index, surging 1.7% to another new high as well. Fourth Quarter GDP growth came in surprisingly strong at 3.3%, handily beating economists’ expectations of a 2.0% increase and overshooting the Fed’s own model which predicted a 2.4% growth rate. Consumer spending remained the driving force behind the economic growth. On the week, Fed Chair Powell said the Central Bank isn’t "actively considering moving the federal funds rate down." Powell also voiced rate cut hesitancy by indicating policymakers are waiting to gain "greater confidence" that inflation will remain soft to set up a cut conversation: “We want to see more good data [on inflation]. It is not that the six months of data isn't low enough. It is. But whether we can take that with confidence that we are moving sustainably on to 2% is a question.”
