Stocks notched healthy gains last week - the S&P 500 rose about 2.3%, the Dow Jones was up just shy of 2%, its best week since December, and the Nasdaq was the out-performer, jumping nearly 2.9%. The overall trend is still positive for the stock market, especially as it keeps breaking out to new highs - stocks are on track for five consecutive month of gains. Optimism seems to mostly be stemming from this week’s Federal Reserve meeting, where the central bank left interest rates unchanged and Fed Chair Jerome Powell reinforced that interest rate cuts are still coming, despite a recent bout of hot inflation.
Economic reports from last week came back mostly positive:
•Homebuilder Sentiment - higher than expectation
•New Residential Construction - higher than expectation
•Existing Home Sales - higher than expectation
•Manufacturing (Philadelphia) - higher than expectation
•Jobless Claims - higher than expectation
In a holiday-shortened week, investors will look for guidance from economic reports like Housing, Consumer Confidence & Sentiment, Personal Income and Jobless Claims.