Volatility, Uncertainty Rule the Week for Markets
The Weekly Update
Week of May 6th, 2024
By Christopher T. Much, CFP®, AIF®
Stocks notched a solid gain last week, rallying behind upbeat earnings, a dovish Fed, and mixed economic data.
Stocks Pop, Drop, Then Rally
Markets began the week with an upward bump as positive news from some mega-cap tech companies outweighed disappointing updates from other tech names.
The tone quickly changed on Tuesday as higher-than-expected Q1 wage growth triggered inflation and interest-rate anxiety—just as the Federal Open Market Committee kicked off its third meeting of the year. Each of the three major averages dropped more than 1.5 percent on the last trading day of April.
When the Fed announced it was holding rates steady on Wednesday, stocks initially rallied on the news, but sellers got the upper hand late in the trading session, and prices ended the day slightly down.
On Thursday, stocks trended higher as more companies reported upbeat Q1 results. Then, …