5 world market themes for the week ahead
Amazon reporting results will keep investors' focus in the days ahead on the global rates outlook and on tech earnings, while growth and inflation data from Europe and China are also coming out.
1/ WILL THEY, WON'T THEY?
Hints of whether the Fed still expects interest rate cuts at some point this year takes centre-stage for investors at the central bank's meeting that concludes on Wednesday.
Rate action is unlikely, but comments from Fed Chair Jerome Powell about the potential for policy easing later in 2024 will be scrutinized.
In March, the Fed projected three rate cuts this year but stronger-than-expected inflation reports are casting doubt on whether it will be able to ease policy that much — and that soon.
A ratcheting down of rate cut expectations has been a key factor behind the rise in Treasury yields and recent pullback in stocks. Fed futures markets now predict some 35 bps of easing in 2024 down from 150 bps expected at the start of the year.
2/ TECH TALK
The last of the «Magnificent Seven» megacaps that drove a fiery stock rally in 2023 to report are Amazon, reporting Tuesday, and Apple, on Thursday.
Some of their peers such as Tesla and Facebook parent Meta Platforms have given a mixed performance.
Apple shares have lost their lustre in 2024, tumbling over 10%. The iPhone maker is expected to post a decline in first quarter earnings after China smartphone shipments fell 19%.
Amazon's cloud computing business will be in focus while investors will be attuned to the online retailing giant's view
