(Bloomberg) — Stocks climbed at the end of a week marked by wild market gyrations as strong earnings from Apple Inc. lured dip buyers, overshadowing fears that the Federal Reserve will have to act aggressively to thwart the fastest inflation since the 1980s.
After struggling to find direction for a few hours on Friday, the S&P 500 halted a three-day slide. The technology-heavy Nasdaq 100 — which is still on pace for its worst month since the 2008 financial crisis — outperformed. The iPhone maker soared on results that sailed past Wall Street estimates, marking a victory against a supply-chain crunch fueled by the pandemic and chip shortages.
“Given recent volatility, there is a hope corporate earnings can stabilize markets,” said Lindsey Bell, chief markets and money strategist at Ally. “Investors hope that market fundamentals, like earnings results, can shift the focus away from fears of central bank policy changes and inflation. It might take a lot of good news to change the tone on Wall Street, though.”
Markets have whipsawed since Fed Chair Jerome Powell signaled faster tightening, adding to investor concerns about geopolitical tensions and an uneven earnings season. Two financial giants raised their forecasts of how quickly officials will raise rates this year, with Bank of America Corp. predicting a move at every meeting. JPMorgan Chase & Co. separately lifted its call to five hikes in 2022 from four previously. BlackRock Inc.’s strategist Scott Thiel warned that the central bank risks a hawkish policy mistake as it strives to extinguish price pressures largely caused by the chaos in supply chains.
Other corporate highlights:
- Visa Inc. reported earnings that beat the average analyst estimate.
- Caterpillar Inc.’s earnings beat estimates as surging demand and higher prices for diggers, bulldozers and trucks muted the impact of rising raw-materials costs.
- Chevron Corp. posted disappointing profits after slumping values for some long-held fields hurt the oil giant’s ability to take full advantage of surging energy prices.
- Robinhood Markets Inc.’s revenue that fell short of Wall Street estimates as equities trading declined and gave a disappointing outlook.
For more market analysis, read our MLIV blog.
Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
- The S&P 500 rose 0.8% as of 12:56 p.m. New York time
- The Nasdaq 100 rose 1.5%
- The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.1%
- The MSCI World index rose 0.4%
Currencies
- The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed
- The euro was little changed at $1.1155
- The British pound was little changed at $1.3392
- The Japanese yen rose 0.1% to 115.22 per dollar
Bonds
- The yield on 10-year Treasuries declined two basis points to 1.78%
- Germany’s 10-year yield advanced one basis point to -0.04%
- Britain’s 10-year yield advanced two basis points to 1.24%
Commodities
- West Texas Intermediate crude rose 0.5% to $87.01 a barrel
- Gold futures fell 0.6% to $1,784.80 an ounce
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