The US markets fall on the first day of the week:
The US market opened yesterday, similar to last week’s close, in which the Dow Jones Industrial Average experienced losses after four weeks of consecutive increases. Nasdaq and S&P 500 closed down last week.
The Nasdaq now fell by 0.62% to 11,997.94 points, down from 12,053 points, while the Dow Jones fell by 0.16% and the S&P 500 by 0.14%. The US dollar index fell to 101.185 against a basket of foreign currencies, down 0.36%.
Earning season:
The current week is filled with many earnings reports for major US companies, especially today, as McDonald’s, General Motors, Microsoft, Alphabet, Meta, and UPS will announce profits for the first quarter of this year, and this data will have a substantial impact on the movement of the NASDAQ index.
The US dollar is heading for a new monthly decline:
The dollar is now on track for a second consecutive monthly loss ahead of more economic data that will likely shed more light on the future path of interest rates.
The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of six other currencies, is trading slightly lower at 101,345 but is still on track for a monthly loss of about 1% after falling more than 2% in March.
Concerns that the US economy is heading for a sharp slowdown have weighed on the dollar index recently after it reached a 20-year high late last year.
The Federal Reserve is expected to raise interest rates by another 25 basis points at its policy-setting meeting next week as inflation proves to be more steady than anticipated. However, the focus will be on what happens next amid growing expectations that the central bank will begin an easing cycle—this year.
The US data calendar is blank mainly today, but first-quarter GDP data will be carefully studied on Thursday. The reading is expected to show that growth slowed from the previous quarter.
The Personal Consumption Expenditure Price Index – the Fed’s preferred measure of inflation – is also due later this week and is expected to show that inflation remained stubborn through March.
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