The S&P 500 Index remains in a bull market and is trading at a record high, driven by numerous catalysts: strong corporate earnings and investors moving past the Iran war, mirroring their response to the Ukraine war.
It ended last week at $7,473, and continued the uptrend on RWA platforms like Hyperliquid and Ondo. Here are the top catalysts for the SPX Index and its top ETFs like VOO, SPY, and IVV.
S&P 500 Index soaring after US-Iran deal
The S&P 500 and its top ETFs will be in the spotlight this week after Trump announced a new deal with Iran. While details are scant, rumors are that the deal will see a gradual reopening of the Strait and end to its blockade against Iranian ports.
Media reports suggest that the deal will also call for a 60-day ceasefire that will see the two countries negotiate a nuclear deal. These events are important for stock market because they will drag crude oil prices lower, which will in turn lead to lower consumer and producer inflation.
Indeed, data shows that WTI and Brent crude oil prices plunged on popular platforms like Hyperliquid and Aster.
Therefore, the S&P 500 Index will react to any new developments in the Middle East. If the deal holds, it will likely continue the strong uptrend in the near term.
Key corporate earnings
The S&P 500 Index has done well in the ongoing earnings season, which has been the best one in years. For example, NVIDIA published some of the best results in corporate America, with its revenue soaring by 79% to $81 billion.
The company also predicted that it will make over $91 billion in the current quarter. Historically, NVIDIA (NASDAQ: NVDA) tends to be highly conservative, meaning that its numbers will be better than expected.
Altogether, S&P 500 Index companies reported a strong earnings growth of 28%, the highest figure since 2021.
Some top companies will release their earnings this week. The most notable ones will be software companies like Salesforce, Autodesk, MongoDB, Okta, Snowflake, and Synopsys.
Other top companies to watch will be Marvell Technology, Dell, and AutoZone. While these companies are important and large ones, their impact on the broader market will be a bit limited.
US to publish key macro data
The S&P 500 Index will also react to some key macroeconomic data from the United States that will help the Federal Reserve when making its next interest rate decision.
There will be no economic data on Monday as the US markets will be closed for the Memorial Day weekend. The first key data to watch will be the consumer confidence report on Tuesday. This is a crucial number because consumer spending is the biggest part of the US GDP.
The US will next publish the latest Personal Consumption Expenditure (PCE) report on Thursday. Analysts expect the figure to come in above 3% as energy prices soared.
The index will also react to statements by some key Federal Reserve officials like Michele Bowman, Lisa Cook, Lori Logan, and Raphael Bostic.
Still, these statements and data will have a limited impact on the stock market as investors have already mapped up their Fed expectations. Analysts now expect that the Fed will hike rates this year if energy prices remain at an elevated level.
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