The mixed performance in the financial markets came as they headed into a week heavy with significant earnings reports. Plus, an upcoming tariff deadline further contributed to the market’s volatility. It was a good week for stocks, with the S&P 500 finishing the week 0.6% higher and the Nasdaq up 1.5%. And though the good vibes seem to be sticking, futures for both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 were down slightly—0.04% and 0.03% as of writing. At the same time, dow futures sank 27 points, or 0.05%.
The market is anticipating that office earnings releases will be closely watched. As of this writing, 59 companies in the S&P 500 have announced their numbers. Surprisingly, about 86% of these companies were above their expectations. Investors have a very close eye on the next reports from the big names including Alphabet and Tesla. If these stocks do really well, they have the potential to make a larger dent to the major averages.
The S&P 500 futures had a small gain of 0.02% and Nasdaq 100 futures were unchanged. Dow futures fell 18 points, or 0.04%, signaling a risk-off tone among investors.
So traders are keenly labeling the list of earnings that come their way. They’ve got a hard deadline of August 1 as well, when countries begin paying the new tariffs to the United States. Howard Lutnick emphasized the significance of this date, stating, “That’s a hard deadline, so on August 1, the new tariff rates will come in.” He continued that discussions among member countries can still proceed beyond the date. This does not stop impending tariffs from coming into effect as planned.
Market analysts are optimistic that this earnings season is going to continue positively enough to keep the upward trajectory up. Mark Malek noted, “We’re at an all-time high for the S&P 500 right at the beginning of earnings season.” He further remarked on the importance of maintaining positive results throughout this period: “If we can get through this earnings season with not too many major failures, I think that is really, really important at this point, if we want to continue this upward momentum that we have in the market.”
Looking forward, the June reading for leading indicators is expected on Monday at 10 a.m. ET. This information will add much-needed context to evolving economic trends as traders sift through the noise of corporate earnings and trade headlines.