Weekly Market Commentary

Weekly Market Commentary July 20, 2026 The Markets Rethinking expectations for inflation and artificial intelligence (AI). It was a rough week for Wall Street. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index (S&P 500) fell about 1.5 percent, the Nasdaq Composite dropped 2.8 percent, and the Dow posted its weakest weekly performance since late March, reported Naomi Buchanan of Barron’s. Here’s what happene...

Weekly Market Commentary July 13, 2026 The Markets America's wealth looks different than it did just a couple of generations ago. A lot has changed since 1989. Back then, there were no smartphones or streaming services. There wasn’t an app for anything. The first digital camera arrived the previous year, and the first handheld global positioning system (GPS) became available in 1989. While technol...

Weekly Market Commentary July 06, 2026 The Markets The market spent the first half of 2026 floating like a butterfly. The market slipped every punch during the first six months of 2026, and there were a lot of them: the Iran War, gyrating oil prices, rising inflation, changed interest rate expectations, employment concerns, and mounting national debt. Each issue stepped into the ring swinging and,...

Weekly Market Commentary June 29, 2026 The Markets Lowering inflation may prove to be a challenge. Last week, inflation was on the minds of investors after one of the Federal Reserve (Fed)’s favorite inflation gauges showed inflation at a three-year high. Both headline and core inflation were well above the Fed’s two percent target. Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) IndexMay 2026 Price Incre...

Weekly Market Commentary June 22, 2026 The Markets Americans hope for a peace dividend – lower prices. Last week, President Trump signed a memorandum of understanding between the United States and Iran. Stock and bond markets welcomed the news. “Investors are hopeful the 14-point framework will lead to the Strait of Hormuz reopening, which could drag down oil prices and help tame inflation,” repor...

Weekly Market Commentary June 15, 2026 The Markets Markets rarely move in a straight line. Investors had a lot to consider last week. Rising inflation, interest rate uncertainty, and ongoing conflict in the Middle East weighed on markets. Yet stocks finished the week higher amid hopes for peace, enthusiasm for a stock launch, and improved consumer sentiment. Here’s a recap: Consumer prices rose. T...

Weekly Market Commentary June 08, 2026 The Markets There was some good news and some bad news last week. Let’s start with the good news: Employment gains exceeded expectations last month. Employers in the United States added 172,000 new jobs in May, similar to April’s 179,000 new jobs. The unemployment rate remained steady at 4.3 percent, the average work-week length was about 34 hours, and wages...

Weekly Market Commentary June 01, 2026 The Markets It was a record-setting month. “Sell in May and Go Away” was an investment strategy promoted by the Stock Trader's Almanac. The idea was based on historic research that suggested holding stocks, as represented by the Dow Jones Industrial Average (Dow), from November to April delivered better returns than holding stocks all year round. “What [the r...

Weekly Market Commentary May 26, 2026 The Markets Feeling the pinch of rising prices. The cost of living is increasing in many places around the world. “The war has sent oil prices soaring and led to shortages of products like jet fuel. Coal prices have also risen as some power companies switch to coal from natural gas to generate electricity. Countries that depend on other fuel sources—from renew...

Weekly Market Commentary May 18, 2026 The Markets The bond market was not happy last week. The bond market typically doesn’t get as much attention as the stock market does, but it is a powerful force in the financial world. When a government, company, or other type of organization needs financing, it may issue a bond. In return for borrowing money, the bond issuer promises to pay a set amount of i...