NEW YORK: US investors will scrutinise Wall Street earnings and the Federal Reserve next week after the S&P 500 gained 11% in 2026 and technology shares weakened.
Alphabet and Microsoft report on Wednesday, while Amazon follows on Thursday. About one-third of S&P 500 companies are due to release quarterly results.
More than 100 companies have reported so far. LSEG IBES data puts third-quarter S&P 500 earnings on pace to rise more than 32% from a year earlier. Investors are watching whether AI spending is producing adequate returns.
Hyperscaler capital spending is expected to reach around $800 billion this year. That spending supports companies tied to the AI buildout, but higher financing costs have increased scrutiny.
“There are a lot of balls in the air,” said Alpine Macro chief equity strategist Nick Giorgi. The Nasdaq Composite edged lower Friday after posting its biggest daily drop since June on Thursday.
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Meta and Lam Research results disappointed investors. The Federal Reserve raised rates in September for the first time since 2023.
Late Friday, Fed funds futures showed less than a 10% chance of another increase on Wednesday. They implied roughly an 80% chance of a December hike.
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Investors are also watching the November 3 US midterm elections as another possible source of market volatility.
Greenwood Capital chief investment officer Walter Todd said he would watch Fed Chair Kevin Warsh’s press conference for clues about December.
