The Strength of the Market is: Weak

Stocks were lower last week as tariffs continued to worry investors. To end the week, President Trump said he expects trade deals to be reached with China and the European Union. Earlier in the week, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell frightened investors by saying Trump's tariff policies could drive up inflation in the near term and cause challenges for the central bank. Last week, the Dow Jones and Nasdaq each lost more than 2%, while the S&P 500 slid 1.5%. Financial markets seem to be waiting and looking for direction with trade deals and tariff policy.

Economic reports from last week came back mixed:

•Manufacturing (New York) - higher than expectation

•Manufacturing (Philadelphia) - lower than expectation

•Homebuilder Sentiment - higher than expectation

•New Residential Construction - lower than expectation

•Retail Sales - in-line with expectation

•Jobless Claims - lower than expectation

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