The Weekend Rip
Happy Weekend!
Markets rode a rollercoaster this week. Trump softened China tariff threats, OpenAI deals stoked the AI bubble furnace, and record bank earnings met loan cockroaches.
📊 Next Week Prep: Big Tech earnings season begins. Watch Tesla, Netflix, and macro data for the next market catalyst.
Let's recap and prep you for the week ahead.
◀️ Markets rebounded Monday as Trump walked back Friday’s China tariff threats, reviving hopes for a Xi meeting and sending tech, energy, and rare earth stocks higher. OpenAI inked a 10-gigawatt custom chip deal with Broadcom, fueling speculation around trillion-dollar AI infrastructure ambitions. Gold hit a record $4,078/oz, Bitcoin rose 3%, and Tesla climbed 5% on strong China sales. Nuclear and lithium names rallied on supply chain news, while big banks prepped for earnings with JPMorgan pledging $10B toward national security-linked investments. Volatility spiked, but sentiment turned bullish heading into Tuesday’s data and earnings barrage.
🌏️ Markets slipped Tuesday despite record-breaking bank earnings, as geopolitical tensions flared after China restricted business with U.S. subsidiaries of a major South Korean shipbuilder and Trump threatened a cooking oil embargo. AMD climbed on news of a 50,000-chip order from Oracle, while Nvidia lagged. JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs, and Citigroup all beat estimates, but investor sentiment remained muted amid warnings of credit market weakness and sticky inflation. Fed Chair Powell signaled balance sheet tapering may end soon, keeping rate cut hopes alive. Meanwhile, Trilogy Metals soared 60% on a U.S. stake buy, and Walmart jumped 4% on ChatGPT integration.
⚡️ Markets climbed Wednesday as big banks like Bank of America and Morgan Stanley posted record Q3 profits, fueling optimism despite ongoing shutdown gridlock and tariff tensions. Leveraged ETFs surged in popularity, with filings for 5X products amid a 35% market rally since April. United Airlines beat on EPS but missed revenue, while JPMorgan’s Jamie Dimon warned of “cockroaches” in credit markets after subprime loan losses. The Fed’s Beige Book showed flat growth and rising layoff risks, and traders braced for Taiwan Semi’s earnings, expected to break profit records on AI chip demand.
🐂 Markets fell Thursday as President Trump confirmed the U.S. is “in a trade war” with China, rattling investors despite strong earnings from TSMC and major banks. Regional lenders Zions and Western Alliance disclosed tens of millions in bad loans, reigniting fears of broader credit stress. Gold and silver hit record highs, while bond yields dropped on safe-haven demand. TSMC posted record revenue and profit but fell nearly 2% on trade war exposure and profit-taking. Meanwhile, leveraged ETFs surged in popularity, and Fed Governor Miran signaled three rate cuts in 2025 amid rising geopolitical and credit risks.
📈 Markets ended the week on a high note, with major indexes climbing and financials stabilizing after a week of loan-loss jitters and trade war rhetoric. Bitcoin slid toward $100K, erasing $600B in crypto market cap, while gold and silver retreated from record highs. Amex surged 7% on a blowout quarter, forecasting 10% revenue growth. Oracle fell nearly 7% despite bullish long-term targets, as analysts questioned its $225B revenue goal by 2030. Quantum stocks sold off after record highs, with insiders cashing in. All eyes now turn to next week’s tech earnings from Tesla and Netflix.
🤩 This week's Stocks Top 25 showed outperformance vs. the indexes.
Here are the closing prices:
| S&P 500 | 6,664 | +1.70% |
| Nasdaq | 22,679 | +2.14% |
| Russell 2000 | 2,452 | +2.40% |
| Dow Jones | 46,190 | +1.56% |
THE BRIEF
Need a concise summary of what's going on this week? Look no further. Here’s a rundown of this week’s earnings and economic data.
Earnings This Week
Earnings season is chugging along, with over 413 stocks reporting this week.
Above is a quick summary. Check out the full Stocks earnings calendar for the other names reporting this week.
Economic Calendar
In addition to the above, check out this week's complete list of economic releases.