Here’s What Wall Street is Watching This Week Amid Earnings Reports and Economic Data

Market Overview

Here’s what Wall Street is watching this week as US stocks open mixed on Monday morning. The Dow rose 95 points (0.2%) while the S&P 500 gained 0.1%. Conversely, the Nasdaq Composite lost 0.1% as investors await a key earnings report and a slew of economic data points due later this week.

Market Sentiment

The recent narrative of global markets has shifted significantly. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 suffered a crash earlier this month, and US stocks experienced substantial declines in early August due to the yen carry trade unraveling and a weak US jobs report that sparked recession fears. However, a subsequent recovery saw all three major US stock indexes rebound, edging closer to all-time highs.

• Cooling Inflation: A series of recent inflation reports has fueled optimism as investors are betting on potential interest rate cuts from the Federal Reserve.
• Jerome Powell's Comments: Fed Chair Jerome Powell indicated a preference for loosening monetary policy, with a September rate cut appearing likely.

Nvidia Earnings Report

As earnings week kicks off, all eyes are on Nvidia (NVDA), scheduled to report Wednesday afternoon. The stock has surged an impressive 181% this year, largely fueled by the AI boom with expected second-quarter revenue of $28.7 billion and profit of $15 billion.

• Investor Sentiment: Despite skepticism regarding the profitability of AI investments from tech giants, analysts remain bullish on Nvidia.
• Legal Challenges: Compounding market anxiety, a recent ruling against Google's search business has raised concerns about antitrust implications for Big Tech.

Upcoming Economic Data

Investors are also looking for insights from the July Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) price index, the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller US National Home Price Index, and revised GDP figures for the second quarter.

This is a developing story, and updates will follow as more information becomes available.