US Market React to Federal Reserve Signals and Corporate Earnings

market analysis on behalf of Abdelhadi Laabi, Chief Marketing Officer at KAMA Capital. Please don’t hesitate to get in touch if you require any further information.

US stock market futures were under some pressure today, following a minor correction yesterday. This comes as investors weigh the Federal Reserve’s potential timing for rate cuts against economic data that demonstrates strong resilience. Markets are currently anticipating a possible rate cut in May. Investors are also awaiting a new wave of earnings reports today, which could reinforce the market’s strong momentum.

In terms of sector performance, Materials and Utilities were the worst hit yesterday, declining by 2.52% and 2.03% respectively while most other sectors were in the red as well. The Materials sector was particularly impacted by Air Products and Chemicals, which dropped over 15.55% and became the top percentage loser on the S&P 500 after it reported disappointing earnings and reduced its FY24 forecast.

Conversely, the semiconductor industry saw gains, with NXP Semiconductors rising by 2% on better-than-expected results, and NVIDIA climbing over 4% as expectations regarding AI remain positive.

McDonald’s dropped more than 3% following weaker-than-expected global sales, partly due to boycotts in the Mideast.