March 19, 2018 The Week Ahead

Stocks cooled off this week, as the S&P 500 sold off four out of five days. All eyes are on the upcoming FOMC meeting that is set for this upcoming Wednesday. Sentiment on the Street is that the Fed will be raising rates; however, market participants will be focused on its forecasts and views on the economy.

Here are how some of the most widely traded index ETFs performed over the week:
Powershares QQQ ETF (QQQ) -1.24%, SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) -1.67%, SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF (DIA) -1.67%, iShares Russell 2000 ETF (IWM) -0.70%

The VIX popped over a point for the week, closing at 15.80. There is still plenty of uncertainty. It seems like every other day a key member of the Trump administration is getting fired or resigning, as we’ve now seen Rex Tillerson, Gary Cohn, and H.R. McMaster leaving high profile positions.

In addition, market participants are closely following how the proposed tariffs will impact the market and if there will be any retaliation from other nations.

Here are how some futures and commodity ETFs performed over the week: United States Oil Fund (USO) +0.64%, iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond (TLT) +1.61%, SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) -0.75%

Some large cap earnings this week include: Oracle, Federal Express, Micron, and Nike.

Economic Releases:
21 March 2018- Existing Home Sales 10:00 AM ET; EIA Petroleum Status Report 10:30 AM ET; FOMC Meeting Announcement 2:00 PM ET; Fed Chair Press Conference 2:30 PM ET

22 March 2018- Jobless Claims 8:30 AM ET; PMI Composite Flash 9:45 AM ET

23 March 2018- Durable Goods Orders 8:30 AM ET; New Home Sales 10:30 AM ET

Key Earnings:
19 March 2018- ORCL

20 March 2018- DLTH, CHFS, PLCE, FDX, RKDA, SCS

21 March 2018- ATU, GIS, ALTR, FIVE, GES

22 March 2018- CAG, CMC, DRI, JAB, LE, MIK, CDNA, HOME, KBH, MU, NKE, SGH

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