Apple Inc.
AAPL
$175.49
−3.58 (2.00%)
5 Things to know in this week’s markets

Published by

July 25, 2024 2:51 PM
(GMT+2)

Earning reports from several tech giants are to be expected in this coming week’s markets including Apple and Amazon.Key economic reports include a first look at U.S. third-quarter GDP and The European Central Bank’s latest meeting addressing a background of ongoing inflation pressures. Evergrande faced another challenging week with its looming debt crisis greatly impacting the world’s second-largest economy and Bitcoin continues to cause a wild frenzy.Here’s what you need to know to start your week:1. Big tech earningsFacebook (NASDAQ:FB), Google (NASDAQ:GOOGL), Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) and Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) stocks are all set to report earnings during this week. All eyes will be on Facebook on Monday following a 26% drop in Snap shares on Friday.Strong earnings results could help tech stocks broaden the lead they have established over value stocks in a market tug of war. Stock investors are caught between a strong economic recovery and surging commodity prices on one side, and rising Treasury yields and inflation on the other.2. U.S. GDPOn Thursday, U.S. Growth data is expected to show a slowdown in growth as consumer confidence faltered. Economists are forecasting that GDP growth slowed to 2.8% from 6.7% in the last 3 months. The impact of the delta variant, along with rising prices, supply chain strains, and labor shortages contributed to the soft patch in growth but should dissipate in the fourth quarter.Durable goods, initial jobless claims, and personal income and expenditures are to be on the lookout, and Friday’s data will include the core PCE price index.Economic data will be closely watched as it is coming just before the Federal Reserve’s November meeting the following week, where the Central Bank is expected to announce plans to begin cutting back on asset purchases, an important first step toward eventual rate hikes.3. ECB MeetingThe ECB is expected to hold its next policy meeting on Thursday addressing price pressures that are too significant to ignore. As a result, tensions arise between officials over the duration of an inflation surge in the euro area and whether the bank should tweak monetary policy.A jump in price pressures is likely to last longer than anticipated, but the central bank is unlikely to abandon its dovish policy stance just yet.The aggressive re-pricing is mostly spillover from a sharp readjustment in the US and Britain where investors are now expecting tighter policies. Push-back from ECB Chief Christine Lagarde may be expected on Thursday.4. Evergrande buys timeOn Sunday, China’s Evergrande had resumed work on more than 10 projects in six cities. Many of its projects across the country had been halted due to payments owed to suppliers and contractors. A last-minute bond coupon payment averted a default last week.However, Evergrande needs to find $47.5 million by Friday and has nearly $338 million in other offshore coupon payments coming up in November and December. The crisis has spread across the broader Chinese property sector, which makes up around 30% of the economy. This will lead to a string of default announcements, rating downgrades, and slumping corporate bonds.5. Bitcoin volatilityBitcoin hit an all-time high of $67,016 on Wednesday following struggles in recent months as a result of China’s staunch on digital currencies. Crypto advocates believe that the onset of ETFs will support prices and that Bitcoin “has introduced a new paradigm”.Others tout the digital currency as a reserve against inflation which is driven by some of the world’s leading economies.Volatility for Bitcoin and the state of crypto assets looks set to continue whilst their impact and acceptance evolve around the world.Resources: https://www.reuters.com/business/s-inflation-genie-out-bottle-five-questions-ecb-2021-10-25/ https://bitcoinmagazine.com/culture/bitcoin-breaches-all-time-high https://www.investing.com/news/economy/top-5-things-to-watch-in-markets-in-the-week-ahead-2653280 https://www.investing.com/crypto/bitcoin/news

WHAT TO READ NEXT

Ready to get started?

Start trading with the full package, from state of the art platform to free tool and favorable transaction fees.