Forty "W"ritings

S&P 500 earnings for 1Q24 just recently kicked off with reports from the major financial firms. In this weekly, we wanted to provide an overview of what investors could expect over the next few (busy) weeks for earnings

Last week, investors absorbed hotter-than-expected inflation data on both a month-over-month and year-over-year basis. The elevated inflation readings further call into question if the Fed will be able to cut rates anytime soon.

In April 2020, the U.S. economy exited a short but painful recession due to the COVID lockdown. After four years, the question is where are we in the economic cycle? When can the Fed cut rates?

Last week we finished what turned out to be a stellar quarter for equity investors. The S&P 500 made 22 fresh new record highs in the first quarter alone. The U.S. was not alone in the robust rally.

Last week, central banks responsible for setting policy on six of the ten most-traded currencies met to decide the path forward for nearly half of the global economy.1 The Bank of Japan announced the end to the world’s last negative interest rate regime. The Federal Reserve kept interest rates unchanged as the Committee continues to see an economy that is “performing well.” The Bank of England kept interest rates unchanged but hinted rate cuts could be on the horizon amid inflation falling faster than expected. This week, we review the busy week for monetary policy decisions and what it means for markets going forward.