The Strength of the Market is: Strong

Stocks had solid weekly gains despite a U.S. government shutdown, which dragged on for a third day. Investors, so far, have overlooked anxieties surrounding the government shutdown. Wall Street seems to believe that the shutdown won’t stop the momentum in the artificial intelligence stock boom. In the past, government shutdowns have not been much of a market-moving event. Until the shutdown ends, the Labor Department will be pausing almost all economic reporting activities - last week, unemployment and jobs numbers were not reported.

Economic reports from last week came back mixed:

•Pending Home Sales - higher than expectation

•Manufacturing (Dallas) - lower than expectation

•Consumer Confidence - lower than expectation

•Job Openings - higher than expectation

•Employment (Private) - lower than expectation

•Employment (Total) - unreported due to government shutdown

•Jobless Claims - unreported due to government shutdown

This week, investors will look for guidance from economic reports like Consumer Credit, Consumer Sentiment and Jobless Claims.