U.S. Stocks Face Second Week of Losses, Nasdaq Dips 0.1%
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: 2h ago
0mins
Source: Yahoo Finance
- Market Performance: The S&P 500 index barely rose 0.03% this week but fell 0.4% overall, indicating investors' insufficient capacity to digest geopolitical news, leaving market sentiment unsettled.
- Natural Gas Surge: Natural gas futures spiked 75% over five trading days due to Winter Storm Fern, reflecting the impact of extreme weather on energy demand and potentially raising profit expectations for related companies.
- Dollar Depreciation Trend: Over the past five days, the EUR/USD rose nearly 2%, while the dollar fell over 2.7% against the Swiss franc, indicating a shift in investor sentiment away from the dollar, which may affect future forex market dynamics.
- Fed Policy Expectations: The market widely anticipates that the Federal Reserve will maintain interest rates in the 3.5%-3.75% range at next week's meeting, with investors closely watching Trump's nomination for the new Fed chair, which could influence future monetary policy direction.
About the author
Emily J. Thompson
Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.
