Market Outlook

Last week--Monday, April 27 to Friday, May 1, 2026--the stock market had a strong week with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq closing at record highs, driven by stellar tech earnings--notably Apple and Google--and continued AI enthusiasm.  The week saw the S&P 500, the Nasdaq  and the Russell all rise significantly as investors looked past ongoing geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.  The Nasdaq...

Last week--Monday, April 20 to Friday, April 24, 2026--the stock market reached record highs, driven by a blockbuster earnings report from Intel and easing geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, despite a volatile start to the week. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq both secured their fourth consecutive week of gains, with the S&P 500 closing above 7,100 for the first time.  The Nasdaq was the sta...

The stock market surged during the week of April 13–17 with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq hitting record highs.  Markets rallied on hopes of a peace deal between the U.S. and Iran, which intensified after Iran indicated it would reopen the Strait of Hormuz following a ceasefire. This news reversed previous oil price surges, providing relief to global markets.  Banks began reporting solid first-quarte...

The stock market experienced a strong, rally-driven week from April 6 through to April 10, 2026, driven by a potential U.S.-Iran ceasefire easing geopolitical tensions, which caused oil prices to plunge.  A reported two-week pause in the Middle East conflict spurred a massive "risk-on" rally early in the week.  On the news of the ceasefire, oil prices experienced their biggest one-day de...

So this week was only a four-day trading, Monday March 30 to Thursday April 2, due to the Good Friday holiday.  The stock market was heavily driven by geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, with oil prices surging above $100 and driving volatility.  We saw big gains early in the week followed by a tumultuous Wednesday night trading session due to the Trump's speech, where we saw those earl...

The stock market for the week of March 23–27, 2026, was characterized by extreme volatility, driven primarily by shifting headlines regarding the conflict in Iran, fluctuating oil prices, and fears of a long-term bear market.  Stocks surged on Monday Mar 23, with the S&P 500 rising 1.1%, the Dow up 1.4%, and the Nasdaq up 1.4% after President Trump indicated possible, though unconfirmed, peace...

For the week of Monday, March 16, to Friday, March 20, 2026, the stock market was heavily driven by the ongoing geopolitical conflict in the Middle East, fluctuating oil prices, and rising bond yields, which pushed major indices toward a fourth consecutive week of losses.  Despite a brief rally on Monday, markets sank for the rest of the week, with the S&P 500 hitting its lowest close of 2026...

The stock market experienced a volatile week ending March 13, 2026, marked by a third consecutive weekly decline, driven by geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, surging oil prices, and disappointing U.S. employment data.  The major indexes, including the Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq and the Russell, fell as investors feared rising inflation and slower economic growth.  The S&P 500 broke b...

The stock market experienced a volatile week ending March 6, 2026, driven by a "perfect storm" of surging oil prices due to the escalating Iran conflict and a surprisingly weak February jobs report. The major market indices all posted significant weekly losses, with the Dow having its worst week since April 2025.  Oil prices saw their biggest weekly gain since 1983, with WTI crude toppin...

The Dow suffered its biggest weekly drop since mid-November, falling 1.3%.  One of the reasons for this week's drop in the market was NVDA, which despite reporting strong Q4 results, dropped significantly, signaling potential fatigue in the AI trade and skepticism over the longevity of high-cost, mega-cap capital expenditures.  Market weakness was further driven a hotter-than-expected PPI inf...

For the week ending February 20, 2026, the stock market was dominated by a major Supreme Court ruling on tariffs, continued anxiety over Artificial Intelligence (AI) sustainability, and high-stakes anticipation for upcoming Nvidia earnings.  Despite initial volatility, the major indexes closed higher, with the Nasdaq snapping a five-week losing streak.  But the biggest news of the week came on Fri...

The stock market experienced a volatile week ending February 13, 2026, with major indices closing in negative territory, driven by intense fears of A.I. disruption, which impacted wealth management, trucking, and real estate.  And the defensive rotation continued as investors moved toward safety, with consumer staples, energy and utilities leading gains.  This flight to safety put major pressure o...

The stock market experienced a highly volatile week ending, characterized by a massive AI-driven tech sell-off earlier in the week followed by a pretty dramatic rebound on Friday.  In fact, Friday's rally saw the Dow Jones Industrial Average close above the 50,000 level for the first time.  The strength in the Dow was driven by a rotation into defensive and cyclical sectors (such as the indus...

The stock market experienced a volatile week characterized by a mix of record-highs early in the week, a subsequent retreat, and a focus on the start of fourth-quarter earnings season.  We also had some geopolitical tensions as well as some policy-related volatility. While the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq posted slight weekly losses, small-cap stocks showed considerable strength.

The stock market rallied to record highs this week, with the Dow, the S&P 500, and the Russell 2000 leading the way higher more so than the Nasdaq, meaning this rally was driven by broad participation and not just the big tech stocks.  We also saw positive sentiment from a weaker-than-expected jobs report suggesting potential Fed rate cuts, and all of this comes ahead of the new earnings seaso...

The S&P 500, the Nasdaq and the Dow all posted losses as 2025 wound down, partly due to profit-taking and a bit of weakness in the tech names. Overall, 2025 was a strong year for the market, with the S&P finishing the year up 16%, the Nasdaq up 20%, and Dow up 13%.  Gold and silver rallied near the year’s end, with precious metals hitting highs before pulling back.

This past week, the stock market saw continued strength driven by AI enthusiasm (especially in chip stocks like Nvidia and AMD).  Market strength was also driven by potential Fed rate cut hopes from softer inflation numbers as reported by the CPI, and rising precious metals (especially silver). Metals related stocks and ETFs rose in sympathy.  FCX had a great week thanks to the rise in copper.  GD...

Last week in the stock market was marked by the resurgence of the AI trade, led by primarily by stocks like  Nvidia and Oracle.  Ther were some early-week jitters, but we had a strong finish late in the week, espoecially for tech stocks.  We also saw a big drop and recovery for Nike, Micron beat on earnings, we had cooler-than-expected CPI data boosting sentiment, and we got a bit of corporate dra...

This past week in the stock market was defined by a tech pullback, especially in AI, following weak guidance from Broadcom and concerns over Oracle's cloud/AI spending, leading to profit-taking in big tech like Nvidia, though the Dow and small-caps showed strength, hitting new highs as investors rotated into value/cyclical stocks. Also, the Federal Reserve's gave us that widely expected...

The markets have resumed their normal course--up and to the right!  Markets are pricing in more Fed rate cuts, plus recent economic data regarding inflation has been positive.  Both large caps and small caps are doing well.  Tech and non-tech stocks are doing well.  And Netflix bought Warner Brothers Discovery!  Is now the time to get long NFLX?

Major U.S. stock indexes rallied for five straight sessions to close out a volatile November.  Markets are now looking forward to a December rate cut.   Also, early Black Friday sales figure showed a solid start to the holiday season.  Plus, I look at some option trades that I'm considering for this week.

The market continues its slide as weakness in A.I. stocks and bitcoin persists.  The potential Fed Rate cut in December could help ease tensions.  Plus, I look at some option trades that I'm considering for this week.

This past week  was a volatile week for the market and especially tech stocks.  Despite the government shutdown ending, the market sold off as now traders are starting to doubt that the Fed will cut rates in December.  Plus, I look at some option trades that I'm considering for this week.

This past week saw a sharp decline in tech stocks, especially some of the high-flying A.I. stocks.  Volatility greatly increased as the government shutdown continued, the Supreme Court is debating the legality of the Trump tariffs, and inflation and interest rates are still worrisome to the market.  Plus, I look at some option trades that I'm considering for this week.

We had many of the megacap tech stocks report earnings this past week, plus we had the fed rate decision and the Trump/Xi meeting.  How did the markets react?  I'll discuss...plus I'll talk about some potential options trades that I'm looking at this week.