Price Return Last Week
S&P 500 (1.7%) S&P Mid Cap (3.0%) Russell 2000 (3.7%)
MSCI EAFE (0.2%) MSCI EM +2.0%
10 Yr US Treasury Rate – fell from 4.48% to 4.42%
Source: Refinitiv Eikon
Recent News
Worst Day YTD – The S&P 500 returned -1.7% on Friday for the worst performance in a single day so far this year. A cautious outlook from one of the country’s largest retailers the day before and a weak consumer confidence reading were contributing factors to the decline.
Source: Refinitiv Eikon, Barron’s
Fed Minutes – Federal Reserve policymakers noted that recent inflation readings showed progress towards the 2% target but continued progress would remain uneven. It was noted that high inflation readings in Q1 of 2024 would fall off the 12-month change measure in the coming months helping the upcoming readings. However, most saw upside risks to inflation. Several remarked that it will be especially difficult to tell if upcoming inflation readings were the result of persistent changes in inflation or temporary changes associated with new government policies.
Source: Federal Open Market Committee
Consumer Inflation Expectations – A University of Michigan survey shows that the median estimate for the rate of change for prices one year from now rose from 2.7% before the election to 3.3% now. However, almost all of this change can be attributed to Democratic respondents, whose 1-year inflation expectations rose from 1.6% to 4.2%. Conversely, Republican respondents lowered their 1-year inflation expectations from 3.7% to 0.1%.
Source: The Regents of the University of Michigan
At Least We’re Better Drivers – A recent study of Americans showed that 57% of respondents say they are addicted to their phones. On average, in 2023, people checked their phone 144 times per day. Over 75% reported feeling uneasy when leaving their phone at home and over 80% stated that they would make an effort to take their phone with them in the event of a house fire. However, the percentage of people reporting that they use their phone while driving declined from 41% in 2022 to 27% in 2023.
Source: PCMag.com
Upcoming Events
2/25 – Consumer Confidence, Notable Earnings Reports: Keurig Dr. Pepper, Home Depot, First Solar, Intuit
2/26 – Notable Earnings Reports: Lowe’s, TJX, Salesforce, NVIDIA, Synopsys, eBay
2/27 – Durable Goods, Notable Earnings Reports: Vistra, Monster Beverage, HP Inc, Dell Technologies
2/28 – PCE
Source: Refinitiv Eikon
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