March 26, 2018 The Week Ahead
It was another rough week for stocks as a number of catalysts brought uncertainty to the market.
The first, a developing story which includes Facebook and research firm Cambridge Analytica. The research firm was able to gather information of more than 50 million users by using the Facebook platform. It’s alleged that they used this information to target voters and influence political elections. That said, it’s brought an ongoing discussion on Facebook, and how it uses and shares people’s personal information. More people, including politicians, are wondering why it’s not regulated.
Facebook is one of largest companies in the world and is heavily owned in ETFs and by other financial institutions. Shares of the stock dropped by nearly 14% and closed well below its 200 simple moving average.
The second catalyst came out of Washington. On Thursday, President Trump announced a $60B border tariff on imports. Whether or not this spills into a trade war, the markets first reaction was to sell and ask questions later.
And of course, there was an FOMC meeting, debuting the new Fed Chairman Jerome Powell. As expected they raised rates. But, given the uncertainty in the market, we’ll have to pay close attention to if they’ll continue to raise rates at the pace they are expected to.
Here are how some of the most widely traded index ETFs performed over the week:
Powershares QQQ ETF (QQQ) -7.31%, SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) -5.89%, SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF (DIA) -5.61%, iShares Russell 2000 ETF (IWM) -4.90%
The VIX exploded, rising more than 57% on the week, closing at 24.90
Here are how some futures and commodity ETFs performed over the week: United States Oil Fund (USO) +5.82%, iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond (TLT) +0.30%, SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) +2.42%.
Some earnings for this 4-day week include: Walgreens, Restoration Hardware, RedHat, GameStop, and Constellation Brands.
Economic Releases:
28 March 2018- GDP 8:30 AM ET; International Trade 8:30 AM ET; EIA Petroleum Status Report 10:30 AM ET
29 March 2018- Jobless Claims 8:30 AM ET; Personal Income 8:30 AM ET
Key Earnings:
26 March 2018- PAYX, PUMP, RHT
27 March 2018- FDS, FRAN, MKC, RH, SONC, TEUM
28 March 2018- WBA, GME, PVH, UNF, OXM, PRGS
29 March 2018- LNN, STZ, MARK, SNX, TITN, WOR
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