Economic Data and Market Highlights
US equity markets fell during the past week with the S&P 500 falling 1.35%. Amazon helped moderate the S&P 500’s fall as it released earnings on Friday. Sales rose 11% and its stock, the fourth largest in the S&P 500, rose over 6%. A weaker than expected jobs report cause traders to pare back equities. Only 12,000 jobs were added but 100,000 were expected. At face value the result was concerning but issues related to data collection, Boeing’s strike, and recent hurricanes factored into the result should cause investors to focus more on later revisions. The economy remains relatively healthy with the unemployment rate at 4.1% with previous release showing the consumer is still spending.
As noted above, Amazon plays a significant role in the performance of the S&P 500. As Bank of America points out, the concentration of the top ten names has never been larger amounting to approximately 37%.
As consensus earnings continue to be revised down, keep in mind that this concentration plays a considerable role in that result.
In addition to this week’s Presidential election and the Fed’s rate decision, we’ll also be keeping an eye on geopolitical activity, especially in the Middle East. As Iran is considered to be planning a counter offensive to Israel’s recent strikes, and North Korean troops moving into Russia to aid in the war with Ukraine, volatility in the CBOE’s Oil ETF surged last week.
The Upcoming Week’s notable US data points
The Upcoming Week’s notable US data points
