On this week’s AHR Market review..

Over the week global stock indexes rebounded from a modest setback the previous week, as US equity markets eclipsed record highs set last month.

The U.S. economy saw a substantial boost in May, adding 272,000 jobs, far exceeding the projected 180,000 gain.

Earlier in the week, the Bank of Canada became the first central bank among the G7 nations to cut interest rates in this cycle, reducing its policy rate from 5% to 4.75%.

US equities rose over 1%, whilst US technology rose 2.4% for the week as investors digested softening US economic data.

In commodities, the price of U.S. crude oil fell over 2% for the week to $75 per barrel, its lowest level in four months, after oil-producing countries announced plans for a more gradual phase-out of production cuts.

That’s all for this week’s AHR Weekly Podcast. Thank you for listening and for further investment insights head over to ahrprivatewealth.com.

On this week’s AHR Market review.

The major U.S. stock indexes all declined snapping a string of five consecutive weekly gains that had lifted the indexes to record highs.

US inflation held steady in April, a troubling indicator for the Federal Reserve, suggesting that the persistent rate of price increases may endure longer than anticipated and raising doubts about the timeline for potential interest rate cuts.

The personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index saw a 0.3% rise last month, mirroring the unchanged gain in March, according to the Commerce Department’s Friday report.

The US economy's growth in the first quarter was revised downwards, showing less robustness than initially estimated.

Meanwhile, headline inflation in the eurozone increased for the first time in five months, with the year-over-year rise in consumer prices ticking up to 2.6% in May from 2.4% in the preceding two months, surpassing a consensus estimate of 2.5%. ECB Chief Economist Philip Lane hinted at a potential reduction in borrowing costs at the forthcoming June 6 meeting.

On the global stage, the International Monetary Fund upgraded its forecast for China’s economic growth over the next two years yet cautioned that consumer-focused reforms are necessary to sustain high-quality growth

US equities fell 0.5% over the week whilst US technology fell over 1%, in part due to a disappointing earnings announcement from cloud software provider, Salesforce.

That’s all for this week’s AHR Weekly Podcast. Thank you for listening and for further investment insights head over to ahrprivatewealth.com.

On this week’s AHR Market review.

Equity markets were divergent over the week, as earnings announcements from one of the world's largest chipmaker’s masked further concerns around the future path for interest rates in the US.

One of the main factors behind the market's recent divergence has been the impressive performance of artificial intelligence chipmaker Nvidia.

As we near the end of this year's first-quarter earnings season, S&P 500 companies are expected to report solid earnings growth of 10%-11% for the year, a big leap from last year's mere 1% growth rate.

Over in the UK, inflation data revealed a slower-than-expected drop in consumer prices

Value areas of the US equity market fell over 2% during the week, though thanks in large to a rally in Nvidia, the broad US market remained flat for the week whilst US technology rose 1.4%.

The price of oil fell 2.3% for the week to its lowest level in more than three months as a report showed an increase in U.S. crude inventories.

That’s all for this week’s AHR Weekly Podcast. Thank you for listening and for further investment insights head over to ahrprivatewealth.com.

On this week’s AHR Market review.

Equity markets recorded a fourth straight week of gains and reached record highs, following the release of inflation data from the US that has investors once again betting that interest rate cuts may not be too far away.

The catalyst for the market moves over the week appeared to be the release of US inflation data in the form of the consumer price index (CPI).

Elsewhere in economic developments that supported this week's narrative, US retail sales plateaued unexpectedly in April, marking a stark contrast to the 0.6% increase seen in the preceding month.

Dealing with a very different economic dynamic, China has announced additional stimulus measures to rejuvenate its faltering property sector.

Looking at equity returns, US equities closed the week up 1.5% whilst US technology added over 2% for the week demonstrating greater sensitivity to the potential of rate cuts in the US as soon as September.

That’s all for this week’s AHR Weekly Podcast. Thank you for listening and for further investment insights head over to ahrprivatewealth.com.

On this week’s AHR Market review.

Equity markets rose for the third week in a row as quarter one earnings season draws to close and US markets once again get close to all-time highs.

With 90% of S&P 500 companies now having disclosed their earnings for the first quarter, the results have surpassed analyst predictions by a notable 8.5%, marking the most significant positive surprise since the third quarter of 2021.

Furthermore, profitability has seen an uptick after facing pressures throughout 2022 and part of 2023, largely due to a moderation in input-cost inflation.

Looking at monetary policy, the Bank of England (BoE) opted to maintain its base rate at 5.25%, following a 7-2 majority decision by its Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) at its recent meeting.

Over the week the US equities added around 2% and US technology rose over 1%.

Looking to the week ahead, all eyes will be on the US CPI release on Wednesday.

That’s all for this week’s AHR Weekly Podcast. Thank you for listening and for further investment insights head over to ahrprivatewealth.com.

On this week’s AHR Market review.

In a week filled with US economic data, Fed rate decisions and corporate earnings announcements, global equity and bond markets edged higher.

The U.S. Federal Reserve held interest rates steady on Wednesday and signalled it is still leaning towards eventual reductions in borrowing costs but put a red flag on recent disappointing inflation readings that could make those rate cuts a while in coming.

Key US employment data released during the week saw the U.S. economy add 175,000 jobs in April, notably below consensus estimates of 240,000 new payrolls.

Profits at some of the biggest technology companies continued to improve as earnings season neared an end.

Whilst the US fed rate announcement went largely as expected, the softer US labour data was received positively by markets and saw US equities record a 0.5% return for the week, with US technology adding 1.4%.

That’s all for this week’s AHR Weekly Podcast. Thank you for listening and for further investment insights head over to ahrprivatewealth.com.

On this week’s AHR Market review.

Equity markets staged a recovery over the week following the recent slump.

In the U.S., approximately a third of S&P 500 companies, accounting for 40% of the index's market cap, have reported their earnings for the first quarter.

Economic data from the U.S. painted a less rosy picture. The Commerce Department's preliminary estimate indicated that the economy grew at a meagre annualised rate of 1.6% in the first quarter, significantly trailing the anticipated 2.5%.

The Commerce Department also highlighted that core personal consumption expenditures (PCE) inflation—which strips out volatile food and energy prices—climbed at an annualised 3.7% in the first quarter, outpacing expectations and exceeding the Federal Reserve's 2% target for sustainable inflation.

U.S. equities ended the week up by 2.7%, buoyed by strong earnings, with technology stocks particularly strong, rallying by 4.2%.

In fixed income markets, global yields increased over the week, reacting to the higher-than-anticipated U.S. inflation figures.

That’s all for this week’s AHR Weekly Podcast. Thank you for listening and for further investment insights head over to ahrprivatewealth.com.

On this week’s AHR Market review.

Stock markets suffered their third straight week of losses amid concerns about Middle East tensions and the likelihood of U.S. interest rates staying higher for longer.

In economic news, robust figures from the U.S. Commerce Department indicated that retail sales in March surged by 0.7%, significantly exceeding the expected 0.3%, and up from a revised 0.9% increase in February.

In the UK, consumer price inflation dropped to 3.2% in March, the lowest in two and a half years but slightly less than analysts had anticipated.

China reported a better-than-expected 5.3% economic growth for the first quarter of 2024, bolstered by a 6.1% increase in industrial output.

U.S. stock indices fell by 3% over the week, with technology stocks particularly affected, dropping by 5.5% as investors re-adjusted their rate expectations.

Yields of U.S. government bonds rose for the third week in a row as investors continued to rein in their expectations for near-term interest-rate cuts.

Oil prices experienced volatility, with U.S. crude briefly topping $85 per barrel due to the tensions between Israel and Iran.

That’s all for this week’s AHR Weekly Podcast. Thank you for listening and for further investment insights head over to ahrprivatewealth.com.