Markert Recap - Inflation concerns fueled retreat

The Stock Market Started The Week On An Upbeat Note. Market Participants Had A Rosy Outlook For The Future Having Latched Onto The Peak Inflation, Peak Hawkishness, And Soft-Landing Narratives.

Upside momentum quickly fell to the wayside after the August CPI report gave market participants a reality check. It renewed concerns about persistently high inflation, an aggressive Fed rate-hike path, and a potential hard landing that would undercut current earnings estimates.

The reaction from both the stock market and the bond market was brutal. This marks the fourth losing week out of the last five weeks for stocks and Tuesday's sell-off was the fifth-largest point loss for the S&P 500 in history. By the end of the week, the S&P 500 fell below the psychologically important 3,900 level.

The outsized reactions were due to market participants knowing hotter-than-expected inflation data likely meant the Fed is going to stay on an aggressive rate-hike path. The Fed desperately wants to get inflation under control, and it has no interest in being the stock market's friend.

Following the CPI report, the fed funds futures market shifted noticeably. It priced out any expectation of a 50-basis point increase at the September 20-21 FOMC meeting. Instead, it now prices in a 100% probability of a rate hike of at least 75 basis points at the next meeting, according to the CME FedWatch Tool.

The 2-yr note yield, which is more sensitive to changes in the Fed funds rate, rose 28 basis points this week to 3.85%. The 10-yr note yield rose 13 basis points on the week to 3.45%.

Aside from the August CPI report, there was a slew of economic data to digest this week, including a better-than-feared August PPI report that did nothing to dissuade the sell-off. The August Retail Sales report, which didn't show a whole lot of vigor, was also in play for participants.

Adding fuel to the fire, several companies issued earnings warnings this week. FedEx being chief among them, which followed warnings earlier this week from Eastman Chemical, Nucor, and Arconic.

Following the warnings from the aforementioned materials companies, the S&P 500 materials sector was the biggest laggard on the week, closing down 6.7%.

The real estate and communication services sectors suffered the steepest losses after materials, closing down 6.5% and 6.4%, respectively.

Energy and health care were the "best" performing sectors this week, closing down 2.6% and 2.4%, respectively.

• Dow Jones Industrial Average: -4.1% for the week / -15.2% YTD

• S&P Midcap 400: -4.7% for the week / -16.3% YTD

• S&P 500: -4.8% for the week / -18.7% YTD

• Russell 2000: -4.5% for the week / -19.9% YTD

• Nasdaq Composite: -5.5% for the week / -26.8% YTD

Market recap - A SHORT WEEK THAT WAS LONG ON GAINS

The Stock Market Came Into This Shortened Week Of Trading On A Three-Week Losing Streak. It Looked On Tuesday As If That Streak Might Be Extended To Four Weeks, But There Was An Abrupt Turn In Sentiment That Powered A Strong Move In The Major Indices Over The Last Three Sessions.

When it was all said and done, the losing streak was broken and both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite had reclaimed a posture back above their 50-day moving averages.

There were enough news catalysts during the week to knock the market lower.

For instance, China extended its lockdown of Chengdu, Russia said the shutdown of the Nord Stream 1 pipeline will be long lasting, blaming it on the sanctions imposed by Western nations, the Reserve Bank of Australia, Bank of Canada, and ECB all announced aggressive rate hikes, and another litany of Fed officials, including Fed Chair Powell, continued to emphasize the need to get inflation under control and that the Fed will stay at that job for as long as it takes.

Notwithstanding Tuesday's losing session, the stock market looked impervious to negative headline developments during the week.

It also overcame another bump in market rates, some jarring moves in the foreign exchange markets that were accented by dollar strength early in the week and dollar weakness in the latter part of the week, and a Wall Street Journal report that the Fed is likely on a path to raise the target range for the fed funds rate by 75 basis points at its September 20-21 FOMC meeting.

The yen fell to a 24-year low against the dollar this week, the euro hit a 20-year low, and the British pound saw its lowest level against the greenback since 1985.

The 2-yr note yield climbed 17 basis points this week to 3.57% while the 10-yr note yield jumped 12 basis points to 3.32%. Those moves came mostly on Tuesday with a flood of corporate issuance weighing on the market along with festering angst about the Fed stepping up efforts this month to reduce the size of its balance sheet.

Still, stocks did not buckle under the weight of rising rates nor the press for another aggressive rate hike. The resilience became its own bullish catalyst as it was deemed a sign that the market had already priced in the near-term rate hike.

The stock market also entered the week in a short-term oversold condition. With Tuesday's losses, the Dow, Nasdaq, and S&P 500 were down 9.1%, 12.4%, and 9.6%, respectively, from their August 16 highs. That understanding prompted some bargain-hunting efforts that accelerated late in the week after an American Association of Individual Investors Survey showed unusually high bearish sentiment and unusually low bullish sentiment.

Specifically, bearish sentiment among individual investors hit 53.3%, versus the historical average of 30.5%, and bullish sentiment slumped to 18.1%, versus an historical average of 38.0%. Those readings, and the large spread between the two, were regarded as contrarian indicators and sparked a propensity to buy/swing trade beaten-up stocks.

The mega-cap stocks stood out as leaders this week. The Vanguard Mega-Cap Growth ETF jumped 4.1%. Mega-cap stocks had plenty of company, however.

All 11 S&P 500 sectors registered gains for the week ranging from 0.6% (energy) to 5.6% (consumer discretionary). Eight sectors gained at least 3.2%. The Russell 3000 Growth Index was up 4.1% and the Russell 3000 Value Index increased 3.6%.

With the improved standing of the stock market, the CBOE Volatility Index fell 10.5% to 22.79.

There won't be any U.S. economic data of note on Monday, but Tuesday will feature the August Consumer Price Index. That will be a market mover in the coming week knowing that it will shape the market's perspective on the inflation trend and the Fed's potential response to it.

• Dow Jones Industrial Average: +2.7% for the week / -11.5% YTD

• S&P Midcap 400: +4.4% for the week / -12.1% YTD

• S&P 500: +3.6% for the week / -14.7% YTD

• Russell 2000: +4.0% for the week / -16.1% YTD

• Nasdaq Composite: +4.1% for the week / -22.6% YTD

Market Recap - Fear of Fed Fuels Third Straight Losing Week

This Week Included The End Of August And The Beginning Of September. Both Looked Roughly The Same, Which Is To Say Neither Was Good.

Stocks sold off Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. In doing so, the S&P 500 closed the month of August with a 4.2% loss. The Nasdaq Composite for its part was down all three days, too, and closed August with a 4.6% loss.

Thursday went marginally better for the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average, but the Nasdaq extended its losing streak to five sessions on Thursday. That streak extended to six sessions on Friday after some concerning Nord Stream 1 pipeline news undercut a rebound effort that had been underway following an August employment report that was less strong than the July employment report.

The August employment report, however, was not weak. There were 315,000 jobs added to nonfarm payrolls, average hourly earnings were up 5.2% year-over-year, unchanged from July, and the unemployment rate ticked up to 3.7% (from 3.5%) on a higher participation rate. Nonetheless, there was a burgeoning belief after the report that it could compel the Fed to take a less aggressive rate-hike path at its September meeting.

The positive bias following that report was undone, however, when Bloomberg TV reported that Gazprom is going to keep the Nord Stream 1 pipeline shut down due to a "technical issue" that involves an oil leak. There was no timetable provided for when the pipeline might be reopened. That decision came shortly after G7 members agreed to implement a price cap on exports of Russian oil.

For the week, the major indices registered losses between 3.0-4.7%. It was the third straight losing week. The S&P 500, which kissed 4,325 on August 16, came within a hair of 3,900 before closing the week at 3,924.

The catalyst for a lot of the selling interest was a fear of the Fed that carried over from Fed Chair Powell's tough-minded policy speech in Jackson Hole. Cleveland Fed President Mester (FOMC voter) stoked that fear with an acknowledgment that she thinks the fed funds rate should be somewhat above 4.00% by early next year and that she does not anticipate there being a rate cut in 2023.

Her view was another reality check for the market that the Fed is not interested in being the market's friend right now. Instead, its aim is to be the enemy of inflation with rising interest rates and a reduction of its balance sheet. That approach is going to have adverse consequences for economic growth and will diminish earnings prospects.

That understanding has contributed once again to an inclination to sell into strength, which was present throughout the week along with rising Treasury yields and a strong dollar (the yen hit a 24-year low against the greenback and the euro fell below parity at 1.00).

Growth concerns were very much in the mix. Copper futures declined 7.9% this week to $3.40/lb and oil futures fell 6.4% to $87.09/bbl. They were driven lower partly by demand concerns that percolated after Chinese city Chengdu (21.2 million residents) was locked down for Covid testing. The materials sector (-5.0%) was the worst-performing sector this week along with information technology (-5.0%).

The latter was undercut by losses in its mega-cap components and a dismal showing from the semiconductor stocks, which got sideswiped by the news that the U.S. government informed NVIDIA (NVDA) that it is imposing a new license requirement for sales of its A100 and H100 chips to China and Russia. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index declined 7.1%.

All 11 S&P 500 sectors finished lower for the week with losses ranging from 1.6% to 5.0%. The defensive-oriented utilities sector was the "best-performing" sector. Growth stocks saw the biggest hit this week with the jump in long-term rates, but value stocks also saw their fair share of selling. The Russell 3000 Growth Index declined 4.0% while the Russell 3000 Value Index dropped 3.0%.

The 2-yr note yield slipped one basis point for the week to 3.40% but the 10-yr note yield jumped 16 basis points to 3.20%.

As a reminder, U.S. markets will be closed Monday for the Labor Day holiday.

• DJIA: -3.0% for the week / -13.8% YTD

• S&P 400: -4.3% for the week / -15.8% YTD

• S&P 500: -3.3% for the week / -17.7% YTD

• Russell 2000: -4.7% for the week / -19.4% YTD

• Nasdaq Composite: -4.2% for the week / -25.7% YTD

MARKET STARTS AND ENDS WEEK WITH A THUD

The Week Started With A Thud And Ended With An Even Bigger Thud. The Common Catalyst Was Fed Chair Powell's Policy Speech At The Jackson Hole Economic Policy Symposium.

For the week, the Russell 2000 was down 2.9%, the Nasdaq Composite was down 2.6%, the S&P 500 was down 1.2%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down just 0.2%.

On Monday, market participants were reportedly anxious that Mr. Powell's speech would sound resolutely hawkish. The S&P 500 declined 2.1% on Monday. On Friday, Mr. Powell sounded resolutely hawkish and the S&P 500 declined 3.4%, wiping out a half-hearted (and low volume) bounce off Monday's lows that was seen in the intervening sessions.

When the closing bell rang on Friday, the major indices were down 2.9-4.4% for the week. Just about everything got rolled back. The selling was indiscriminate, affecting stocks of all sizes, investment factors of all kinds, and countercyclical and cyclical sectors alike.

The only gainers of note on the week were the CBOE Volatility Index (+24.5%), oil prices (+3.0%), the S&P 500 energy sector (+4.3%), the U.S. Dollar Index (+0.6%), and the 30-yr bond (-2 bps to 3.21%).

The mega-cap stocks paced the broader market's losses. The Vanguard Mega-Cap Growth ETF (MGK) was down 5.0% for the week after falling 4.1% in Friday's session alone. With their mega-cap constituents, the information technology (-5.6%), communication services (-4.8%), and consumer discretionary (-4.8%) sectors were the biggest laggards this week.

Heavy losses were seen across the market on Friday following a short and terse speech from Fed Chair Powell who made it clear the Fed will not be shifting to a rate-cut cycle anytime soon. On the contrary, Mr. Powell pointed out the need to take rates into restrictive territory and to hold them at higher levels for some time until the Fed is confident inflation is getting back down to the Federal Open Market Committee's 2 percent goal.

The Fed Chair openly acknowledged that the effort to reduce inflation "will also bring some pain to households and businesses" and that the "historical record cautions strongly against prematurely loosening policy."

The totality of his remarks were not surprising, but his terse manner was, as it suggested the Fed is not going to pander to the stock market's interest rate wishes -- certainly not at this juncture anyway with the inflation rate still well above the Fed's target.

Notably, Friday's session started with some welcome inflation news. The PCE Price Index and core-PCE Price Index, which excludes food and energy, both moderated in July. They were up 6.3% and 4.6% year-over-year, respectively, versus 6.8% and 4.8% in June.

That was not enough, though, to make the market feel comfortable, especially since Fed Chair Powell said in his speech that "while lower inflation readings for July are welcome, a single month's improvement falls far short of what the Committee will need to see before we are confident that inflation is moving down."

The discomfort was evident in what amounted to a trend-down day after some initial volatility on Friday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average would shed more than 1,000 points as part of a washout that saw the major indices decline between 3.0-3.9% on Friday.

The Treasury market, which had already been under pressure at the thought of a more hawkish-minded Fed, held its ground better in the wake of Mr. Powell's speech. The 2-yr note yield rose just one basis point to 3.40% and the 10-yr note also rose just one basis point to 3.04%. They were up 15 basis points and five basis points for the week, respectively. When the month started, the 2-yr note yield stood at 2.90% and the 10-yr note yield stood at 2.64%.

• DJIA: -4.2% for the week / -11.2% YTD

• S&P 400: -3.0% for the week / -12.0% YTD

• S&P 500: -4.0% for the week / -14.9% for the year

• Russell 2000: -2.9% for the week / -15.4% for the year

• Nasdaq Composite: -4.4% for the week / -22.4% for the year

Market Recap - Winning Streak Comes To An End

A Four-Week Winning Streak For The Market Came To An End This Week. The Simple Reason Why Is That The Market Was Overbought On A Short-Term Basis And Due For A Pullback. Of Course, There Was More To It Than That.

For the week, the Russell 2000 was down 2.9%, the Nasdaq Composite was down 2.6%, the S&P 500 was down 1.2%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down just 0.2%.

Lost in that losing mix is the recognition that the S&P 500 was up as much as 1.1% for the week on Tuesday at 4,325.28. That was a whisker shy of its 200-day moving average, which provided some stern resistance and acted as a barrier to follow-through buying efforts.

For many, it became the appropriate stopping point to take some money off the table following a spirited run that saw the S&P 500 gain 18.9% between its low on June 17 and that Tuesday high. There were some news catalysts in the mix this week that contributed to that mindset.

• China reported a weaker-than-expected batch of retail sales, industrial production, and fixed asset investment data for July.

• The NAHB Housing Market Index for August fell to 49 (a reading below 50 is considered to be negative sentiment), marking the eighth straight monthly decline in the index.

• The Empire State Manufacturing Survey for August sunk to -31.3 from 11.1, which was one of the lowest readings on record.

• July Housing Starts were weaker than expected.

• Total retail sales in July were unchanged from June.

• Existing home sales declined 5.9% month-over-month in July, marking the sixth straight month of declines.

• St. Louis Fed President Bullard (2022 FOMC voter) said he is still leaning in favor of a 75-basis point rate hike at the September FOMC meeting.

• Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari (2023 FOMC voter) said he does not know if the Fed can bring down inflation without triggering a recession.

• Target and Kohl's reported weaker than expected earnings results and Analog Devices and Applied Materials had some cautious commentary on recent business activity, offsetting some of the positivity stemming from better-than-expected reports out of Home Depot, Walmart, and Cisco.

• UK inflation hit a 40-yr high of 10.1% year-over-year in July.

• Germany's Producer Price Index was up 37.2% year-over-year in July, which was the highest reading in more than 70 years.

As one can see, there was a heavy economic drag throughout the week that served as a reminder that the market might have gotten ahead of itself with its rebound enthusiasm. In the same vein, a 10-yr note yield pushing 3.00% was a testament to underlying inflation angst and a renewed headwind for many growth stocks that had logged big gains off the June lows.

The Russell 1000, 2000, and 3000 Growth Indexes were down 1.7%, 3.1%, and 1.8%, respectively, this week versus losses of 1.2%, 2.8%, and 1.3% for the Russell 1000, 2000, and 3000 Value Indexes, respectively. The Vanguard Mega-Cap Growth ETF fell 2.1%.

The losses across the board for the Growth and Value Indexes underscores the relatively broad-based pullback that occurred this week. To be fair, though, most of the damage came on Friday's options expiration day. Entering Friday, the S&P 500 was up less than 0.1% for the week.

There was some fallout on Friday in the meme stock space that served as a reality check of the speculative excess that had been building there throughout the week and certainly since the mid-June lows. Bed Bath & Beyond was the epicenter of Friday's movement, plunging 40.5% in response to a report that Ryan Cohen's RC Ventures had sold its entire stake and a Bloomberg Law article that suggested Bed Bath & Beyond has hired Kirkland & Ellis to help address matters pertaining to the company's debt load.

The weakness in the meme stocks spilled into the broader market as a selling catalyst along with the 10-yr note yield's test of 3.00%.

For the week, eight of the 11 S&P 500 sectors finished lower with losses ranging from 0.6% (health care) to 3.3% (communication services). The winning standouts were consumer staples (+1.9%), utilities (+1.0%), and energy (+1.0%).

• Dow Jones Industrial Average: -7.2% YTD

• S&P Midcap 400: -9.3% YTD

• S&P 500: -11.3% YTD

• Russell 2000: -12.8% YTD

• Nasdaq Composite: -18.8% YTD

STOCK MARKET RALLY INFLATES ON WELCOME SIGNS OF DISINFLATION

The Stock Market Saw Some Real Inflation This Week, Largely Because It Saw Signs Of Disinflation In The Consumer Price Index (CPI), Producer Price Index (PPI), And Import‐Export Price Index Reports For July.

They all went the market's way, which is to say they supported the peak inflation narrative.

The gains were broad based and substantive. The S&P 500 scored its fourth straight weekly advance and crossed an important level (4,231) that some will interpret as a telltale signal that the low in June was the low for the bear market.

Notably, the week's gains were secured almost entirely over two trading sessions (Wednesday and Friday). Prior to Wednesday, which is when the CPI report was released, the major indices were all sporting losses for the week. The tepid start was attributed to reservations about the market being due for a pullback after the big run off the mid‐June lows, some caustic revenue warnings from NVIDIA (NVDA) and Micron (MU), and some nervousness in front of the CPI report.

The latter, though, proved to be a major turning point for sentiment. Total CPI was unchanged month‐over‐month and core CPI, which excludes food and energy, was up a smaller‐than‐expected 0.3%. Importantly, the annual pace of total CPI moderated to 8.5% from 9.1% while the annual pace of core CPI held steady at 5.9%, meaning it did not move higher as had been feared.

This understanding triggered a huge upswing in the major indices, as investors relished the idea that inflation might have peaked, that the Fed might be able to temper the pace of its rate hikes, and that the U.S. economy, which learned last week that 528,000 positions had been added to nonfarm payrolls in July, might be able to enjoy a soft landing.

Various Fed officials attempted to downplay the idea of the Fed being ready to take its foot off the rate‐hike pedal, not to mention pivoting in 2023 to a rate‐cut cycle, yet equity market participants seemed to disregard the warnings.

Notwithstanding such warnings, the prevailing view in the stock market was that inflation rates will continue to moderate in coming months and that Fed officials will ultimately be convinced to soften their hawkish‐minded tone as a result. It only helped the stock market's mood to see the PPI data and Import‐Export price data move in the same direction as the CPI data.

Granted stocks were unable to hold a rally effort in the wake of the PPI report on Thursday, but by Friday morning, that move had been written off as just a case of taking some money off the table after a big move. Come Friday buyers were back in action while sellers were a mostly sidelined bunch.

The major indices all went out on a high note in a grinding rally effort on Friday that wasn't matched with heavy volume but which was impressively resilient nonetheless. The S&P 500, which was flirting with 3,600 in mid‐June, settled Friday at 4,280. The close above 4,231 will be seen by some as an important technical and psychological development. That level marked a 50% retracement of the losses suffered between the January 3 closing level (4,796.56) and the June 16 closing level (3,666.77).

Last week, BTIG technical analyst, Jonathan Krinsky, informed CNBC that "Since 1950 there has never been a bear market rally that exceeded the 50% retracement and then gone on to make new cycle lows." That doesn't mean it is off to the races from here nor does it mean the market is immune from another selloff of some size, but it does resonate for some as a beacon of identifiable downside risk and a reassuring historical precedent.

All 11 S&P 500 sectors closed higher for the week. Gains ranged from 1.2% (consumer staples) to 7.1% (energy). Cyclical sectors saw some of the biggest gains and value stocks outlegged growth stocks in a move that showed reduced fears about the economy suffering a hard landing. The Russell 3000 Value Index increased 3.9% versus a 3.0% gain for the Russell 3000 Growth Index.

There was also a revival this week of speculative activity that translated into huge percentage gains for many of the so‐called meme stocks, as well as the SPAC and profitless story stocks that were all the rage last year. Their moves were clear reflections of a risk‐on mindset driven by the hope that the Fed won't have to go as far as it thinks into restrictive rate‐hike territory.

The Treasury market wasn't as convinced of that point as the stock market seemed to be. The 2‐yr note yield, which is sensitive to changes in the fed funds rate, ended the week up two basis points at 3.25%, virtually unchanged from where it was when the CPI report was released on Wednesday. The 10‐yr note yield settled the week up one basis point at 2.84%, up about five basis points from where it was trading before the release of the CPI report.

To be sure, inflation moderated in a welcome development, but it is still unacceptably high. The Fed's inflation target is 2.0%, whereas CPI is up 8.5% year-over-year and PPI is up 9.8% year‐over‐year. There is a lot more room for inflation improvement and there needs to be a lot more improvement to convince the Federal Reserve that inflation is back under control.

That will be an ongoing war, but there was no doubt that the stock market won the mental battle this week in seeing what it wanted to see, which was a lower inflation rate in July than it saw in June.

• Dow Jones Industrial Average: +2.9% for the week / ‐7.1% YTD

• S&P Midcap 400: +4.4% for the week / ‐8.0% YTD

• S&P 500: +3.3% for the week / ‐10.2% YTD

• Russell 2000: +4.9% for the week / ‐10.2% YTD

• Nasdaq Composite: +3.1% for the week / ‐16.6% YTD

MARKET STEERS ITS WAY TO THIRD STRAIGHT WINNING WEEK

The First Week Of August Ended Up Being Another Winning Week For The Stock Market. It Wasn't An Easy Ordeal, Yet Market Participants Largely Retained The Positive Mindset That Prevailed Throughout July.

Things started on a somewhat weak note. There were some assumptions that the market would face selling pressure after the huge move it made in July. That rang true in the first part of the week but not so much in the latter part of the week. Fittingly, market participants got over the selling hump on Wednesday (hump day), which proved to be the big difference in making this another winning week.

The cautious start to the week coincided with a relatively weak ISM Manufacturing Index for July, a sizable drop in oil prices on demand concerns, and saber-rattling by China in front of an expected visit to Taiwan by House Speaker Pelosi.

The latter visit happened on Tuesday, but China's initial response wasn't deemed proportional to the bluster it was expressing in front of the visit. China ultimately announced that it would hold live-fire military exercises near Taiwan. On Friday, China announced that it will be sanctioning Ms. Pelosi and her family, and cutting back on cooperation with the U.S. on certain matters like climate change initiatives.

The lack of a more consequential response was a catalyst for a broad-based rally on Wednesday, which also featured strong leadership from the mega-cap stocks and another sizable drop in oil prices even though OPEC+ said it was going to raise output in September by 100,000 barrels per day versus July and August when it increased its production quota by 600,000 barrels per day.

WTI crude prices slumped below $90.00 per barrel this week, settling Friday at $88.73 per barrel. That move undercut the energy sector, which was the worst-performing sector this week with a 6.8% decline (including a 2.0% gain on Friday). The best-performing sectors were the information technology (+2.0%), consumer discretionary (+1.2%), and communication services (+1.2%) sectors.

The mega-cap stocks were influential sources of support at the index level most of the week. That was evident in the standing of the vanguard Mega-Cap Growth ETF (MGK). It gained 1.8% for the week versus a more modest 0.4% gain for the S&P 500 and an even smaller 0.1% gain for the Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight ETF (RSP).

That performance made an important difference in the continued outperformance of the growth indexes, as did the relative strength in many smaller-sized companies. The Russell 3000 Growth Index jumped 1.6% this week versus a 0.2% decline for the Russell 3000 Value Index.

This week was not without its speculative flair either. There were some major short squeezes in a number of stocks and AMTD Digital (HKD), which opened for trading at $13.00 per share on July 15, went as high as $2555.30 on Tuesday, August 2, on no news. Its price action became the news.

Switching gears, there was a ton of earnings news this week. The companies reporting didn't have the cachet of last week's reporters. Nonetheless, they generally carried the mantle of providing better-than-feared results, which was still good enough to keep buyers interested.

The earnings news took a backseat to the July employment report as the week progressed. There was some skittishness ahead of that report given the manner in which it could shape the market's perspective on the path of Fed policy.

The report ended up being much stronger than expected. Nonfarm payrolls increased by 528,000, the unemployment rate fell to 3.5%, and average hourly earnings were up 5.2% year-over-year. The key takeaway was that it squashed the friendly notion that the Fed can turn friendly with its monetary policy decisions sooner rather than later.

The Treasury market took that view to heart. The 2-yr note yield, which hit 2.80% earlier in the week and stood at 3.05% right in front of the report, settled Friday's session at 3.23% (up 33 basis points for the week). The 10-yr note yield, which hit 2.53% earlier in the week and stood at 2.70% right in front of the report, settled Friday's session at 2.84% (up 20 basis points for the week).

Initially, the stock market was rattled by the report and the move in market rates, but it eventually found its nerve and put together a nice rebound effort. Friday's session did not culminate in gains for each of the major indices, but the overall performance was better than what many feared it would be based on the shifting rate-hike expectations.

Prior to the report, the fed funds futures market was assigning a 34% probability to a 75-basis point rate hike at the September FOMC meeting. That probability shot up to 68.5%, according to the CME's FedWatch Tool, in the wake of the report.

The relative resilience of the stock market after the employment report squashed its seemingly preferred outcome (i.e. weak data that suggested the Fed will be lowering rates in the first half of 2023) likely revolved around two, alternative takes on the data:

1. The continued strength of the labor market shows that the economy can handle the Fed's rate hikes without devolving into a hard-landing scenario, or

2. Employment is a lagging indicator, and given the lag effect of the Fed's rate increases, there will be much weaker numbers in coming months that will invite a friendlier shift in monetary policy sooner rather than later

It is hard to say what the ultimate driver of sentiment was, but because the market stood its ground for the most part after the report, the S&P 500 scored its third straight winning week.

• Dow Jones Industrial Average: -0.1% for the week/-9.7% YTD

• S&P Midcap 400: -0.3% for the week/-11.9% YTD

• S&P 500: +0.4% for the week/-13.0% YTD

• Russell 2000: +1.9% for the week/-14.4% YTD

• Nasdaq Composite: +2.2% for the week/-19.1% YTD

A BIG WEEK OF GAINS CLOSES OUT A HUGE MONTH FOR THE STOCK MARKET

Anyone Following The Market This Week Has A Right To Feel Exhausted Going Into The Weekend. 

It was a huge of week of news that was ultimately matched with some big gains for the week that padded some huge gains for the month, which were driven in part by short-covering activity and a bid to add back exposure to equities following the brutal first half of the year.

Briefly, roughly 175 S&P 500 companies reported their results for the June quarter, the FOMC held a policy meeting, the economic calendar featured the Advance Q2 GDP Report, President Biden held a call with President Xi mainly to discuss Taiwan and Russia, Senator Manchin had a stunning reversal of position and reached an agreement with Senator Schumer on the provisions for the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, and Congress passed a $280 billion bill, which included $52 billion for increasing semiconductor manufacturing capacity, that is designed to fend off competition from China.

Tucked in between was a halting earnings warning from Walmart that was pinned on food and fuel inflation detracting from spending in general merchandise categories, a warning from Best Buy about a further softening in demand for consumer electronics, a warning from Stanley Black & Decker about weakening customer demand, the highest year-over-year reading for the PCE Price Index (6.8%) since 1982, the third straight monthly drop in Consumer Confidence, and a bleak New Home Sales report for June.

The bad news, however, didn't derail the stock market, which locked in on better-than-feared results and/or guidance from Alphabet, Microsoft, Apple, and Amazon.com, a marked drop in Treasury yields, and the idea that the weak economic data would compel the Fed to take less aggressive steps with future rate hikes.

The Federal Reserve was central to this week's action. It raised the target range for the fed funds rate on Wednesday by 75 basis points to 2.25-2.50%, as expected. Fed Chair Powell, however, did a commendable job at his press conference of walking the line between needing to be tough still on fighting inflation but conceding that it would likely be appropriate in coming months to slow the pace of rate increases given how frontloaded the rate hikes have been to this point.

He didn't rule out another 75-basis point rate hike at the September meeting. He said the data would dictate that decision. He also said that the Fed wouldn't be offering any clear-cut guidance like it had been doing but would instead let the data dictate policy decisions now on a meeting-by-meeting basis.

There was ample room for interpretation in the wake of his remarks, but the prevailing view of the market was that Mr. Powell opened the door to the Fed taking a step down with its aggressive rate-hike posture. That was enough to launch a post-FOMC rally on Wednesday that was sustained through Friday's close.

Notably, the fed funds futures market is pricing in two rate cuts in the first half of 2023, according to the CME's FedWatch Tool. Mr. Powell didn't say anything that supported such thinking, yet market participants have been seemingly clinging to an expectation that weakening economic data will be the pivot point for the Fed.

The second straight quarter of a contraction in real GDP (-0.9%) contributed to that view; meanwhile, the Treasury market moved in a direction that corroborated that thinking. The 2-yr note yield dropped nine basis points this week to 2.90% and the 10-yr note yield fell 14 basis points to 2.64%, leading to a further inversion of the 2s10s spread that is seen by many as a harbinger of weak growth and/or a recession.

In that vein, it would be remiss not to point out that growth stocks once again led this week's rally effort. The Russell 3000 Growth Index rose 4.9% versus a 3.4% gain for the Russell 3000 Value Index.

Clearly, though, the otherwise solid 3.4% gain in the Russell 3000 Value Index underscored that there was broad-based buying interest. All 11 S&P 500 sectors gained ground this week with gains ranging from 1.6% (consumer staples) to 10.3% (energy). The latter closed out a huge week on the back of stronger-than-expected earnings results from Chevron and Exxon Mobil.

For the month, every sector advanced. Gains ranged from 3.1% (consumer staples) to 18.9% (consumer discretionary). A surge in Tesla and Amazon.com paved the way to that massive gain for the consumer discretionary sector, which is still down 20.4% for the year.

Altogether the Nasdaq Composite soared 12.4% in July followed by the S&P Midcap 400 (+10.8%), the Russell 2000 (+10.4%), the S&P 500 (+9.1%), and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (+6.7%). The S&P 500, which flirted with 3,600 in mid-June, closed July at 4,130.29.

• Dow Jones Industrial Average: -9.6% YTD

• S&P Midcap 400: -11.6% YTD

• S&P 500: -13.3%

• Russell 2000: -16.0%

• Nasdaq Composite: -20.8%

STOCKS FIND A RALLY CATALYST IN FACE OF WEAK ECONOMIC DATA

Headlines That Reinforced A Slower Growth Environment Were Persistent This Week, But Just As Persistent -- Or Resilient We Should Say -- Was The Stock Market. It Did Not Let The Growth Worries Get It Down.

In fact, it traded through the growth worries to record a winning week that had been looking a lot better before Snap went crackle pop in the wake of its Q2 earnings report and dour view of conditions for online advertising.

Before the Snap news after Thursday's close, the Nasdaq Composite was up 5.2% for the week and the S&P 500 was up 3.5% for the week. They would eventually close the week with gains of 3.3% and 2.5%, respectively, while the S&P Midcap 400, Russell 2000, and Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 4.0%, 3.6%, and 2.0%.

In turn, they all reclaimed a posture above their 50-day moving average and the S&P 500 briefly traded above 4,000 on Friday after flirting with 3,600 in mid-June.

Overall, it was a good week for stocks despite Friday's pullback but not a good week for the economic outlook. Specifically:

• The July NAHB Housing Market Index fell to 55 from 67, registering its biggest monthly drop on record outside of the drop seen in April 2020.

• June housing starts were weaker than expected and building permits (a leading indicator) for single-unit dwellings fell in every region.

• Existing home sales were weaker than expected in June and declined for the fifth straight month.

• Initial jobless claims topped 250,000 for the first time since mid-November 2021.

• The July Philadelphia Fed Index fell to -12.3 from -3.3, paced by a sharp decline in the new orders index.

• The June Leading Economic Index decreased 0.8%, which was the fourth consecutive decline, prompting the Conference Board to suggest that a U.S. recession around the end of this year and early next year is now likely.

• The preliminary July IHS Markit Manufacturing PMI slipped to 52.3 from 52.7 while the IHS Markit Services PMI slumped to 47.0 from 52.7 (a number below 50.0 is indicative of a contraction in business activity).

On top of the economic data, Apple, Alphabet's Google, Microsoft, and Snap were reported to have indicated that they plan to slow their hiring activity.

The deteriorating economic environment registered more in the Treasury market than it did in the stock market. The 2-yr note yield fell 14 basis points for the week to 2.99% and the 10-yr note yield fell 15 basis points for the week to 2.78%. The inversion, whereby shorter-dated securities yield more than longer-dated securities, is a reflection of growth concerns and is seen by some as a harbinger of a possible recession.

The recession view didn't register in the stock market -- not this week anyway. The best-performing sector was the consumer discretionary sector (+6.8%), which was helped by a huge move in Tesla after its better-than-feared Q2 report, followed by the materials (+4.1%), industrials (+4.1%), information technology (+3.6%), and energy (+3.5%) sectors.

Conversely, two of the three sector losers this week were the countercyclical health care (-0.3%) and utilities (-0.5%) sectors.

It was the communication services sector (-1.2%), though, that was the worst-performing sector this week. Netflix did what it could do to lend support, rallying nicely after its better-than-feared Q2 earnings report; however, some gloomy earnings results and/or guidance from AT&T and Verizon, coupled with the retreat in Alphabet and Meta Platforms after Snap's disappointment, undercut the sector. Snap for its part plummeted 39% on Friday.

The stock market behaved as if the bad economic news and more challenging earnings environment heard throughout the week was not a surprise. It wasn't in one respect, as the fallout in the first half of the year was largely predicated on a belief that the stock market would be dealing with the bad economic news and more challenging earnings environment it heard about this week.

Aside from that, though, the stock market found a rally catalyst on Tuesday in the BofA Global Fund Manager Survey, which revealed the lowest equity allocation since the Lehman Bros. crisis and the highest cash level since 2001. This news became the focal point for a contrarian-minded approach that supported the market throughout the week.

It overshadowed the poor economic data, as well as the first rate hike from the ECB in 11 years that was more aggressive than most investors expected it would be. Specifically, the ECB raised its key lending rates by 50 basis points when the majority of market participants thought it would raise rates by only 25 basis points. The Bank of Japan for its part left its key lending rate unchanged at -0.10%, as expected.

With clear signs of slower growth and falling long-term rates, it was the growth stocks that took the lead this week in driving the broader market's gains. The Russell 3000 Growth Index was up 3.2% versus a 2.4% gain for the Russell 3000 Value Index. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index surged 5.5%, aided by reports that the bill that will provide $52 billion for the semiconductor industry should pass the Senate next week.

• Dow Jones Industrial Average: -12.2% YTD

• S&P 400: -15.7% YTD

• S&P 500: -16.9% YTD

• Russell 2000: -19.5% YTD

• Nasdaq Composite: -24.4% YTD

UNABLE TO ESCAPE SELLING PRESSURE AS INFLATION REMAINS IN FOCUS

The Stock Market Endured Another Volatile Week That Began With Three Days Of Selling And Ended With A Rebound That Lifted The S&P 500 Off Its Lowest Level In Nearly Four Weeks.

Still, the benchmark index surrendered 0.9% for the week while the Nasdaq (-1.6%) underperformed and the Dow (-0.2%) finished with a slimmer loss for the week.

The market began the week on an apprehensive note, due in part to hesitation ahead of Wednesday's release of June CPI. In addition, concerns about global growth continued weighing on sentiment. Spain's Prime Minister Sanchez warned that his country is likely to see lower than expected growth in the coming months, Shell CEO warned that Europe may have to ration energy in the winter, and there were reports of a growing number of people in China boycotting their mortgage payments.

Renewed political turmoil in Italy after Prime Minister Draghi lost support of a major coalition partner briefly drove the euro below parity against the dollar, helping the U.S. Dollar Index secure its third consecutive weekly gain with the Index reaching its highest level since September 2002.

Wednesday saw the release of the June CPI report, which showed a 1.3% month-over-month increase that lifted the yr/yr growth rate to 9.1%, a level not seen since late 1981. The food index was up 9.1% year-over-year while the energy index was up a stunning 41.6% year-over-year. Thursday's release of the June PPI report did little to soothe fears about inflation as headline PPI increased 1.1% month-over-month, lifting the yr/yr PPI rate to 11.3%, just shy of the March peak (11.5%).

Bank earnings for Q2 began coming in during the latter part of the week, starting with disappointing reports from JPMorgan Chase and Morgan Stanley. Comments from JPM CEO Dimon received a lot of attention after he expressed worries about unprecedented tightening in the face of significant global turmoil.

Equities finished their down week on a positive note, drawing some support from the preliminary University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment survey for July, which showed an improvement in sentiment due to a dip in inflation expectations after the recent drop in energy prices. This was a positive development, but it could be reversed in a flash if energy prices continue rebounding. WTI crude fell past its 200-day moving average (93.57) to a level not seen since late February on Thursday but bounced to finish Friday's session $7.38, or 8.2%, above its low from Thursday.