On Tuesday, US stocks rallied to record highs as corporate earnings boosted sentiment amid ongoing concerns over inflation and growth.
The S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average set record highs before the start of Tuesday's winning round. United Parcel Service Inc. and General Electric Co. were both up on strong results. Facebook Inc. declined as a promise to buy back more shares and the increase in spending on digital offerings was offset by a loss of revenue. Big Tech companies such as Twitter Inc., Alphabet Inc., and Microsoft Inc. reported after the market closed on Tuesday.
"I don't think anybody's too worried about the big tech names," Ross Mayfield, investment strategy analyst at Baird, said. "Their performances are all incredibly strong in absolute standards that the bar is just so high for them at this point that it can be harder to meet expectations."
The yield on 10-year US Treasuries fell while the dollar rose. The debate over price pressures continues. Former Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers said it was unlikely that officials would successfully deal with the "inflation reality" until it was fully understood.
"We're coming out of a 40+ year bond bull market. And right now we're looking at interest rates, which should be a lot higher from here. With a duration as high as it is in the bond market, one has to be very careful with fixed income securities," Megan Horneman, portfolio strategy director at Verdence Capital Advisors, said.
The earnings season is helping to counter concerns that heightened inflation and tighter monetary policies will slow the recovery from the pandemic. About 81% of the S&P 500 members reported better-than-expected results, despite Citigroup Inc. warning that earnings growth may be nearing its peak.
Here are some events to watch this week:
- Australia CPI, Wednesday
- US Wholesale Inventories, US Durables, Wednesday
- Bank of Japan monetary policy decision and briefing, Thursday
- ECB interest rate decision, briefing by President Christine Lagarde, Thursday
- US GDP, Initial Jobless Claims, Thursday
- Joint G-20 finance and health ministers meet ahead of the Friday weekend summit of heads of state and government
