(Bloomberg) — Stocks were mixed at the end of a volatile week, while Nasdaq 100 futures climbed after strong Apple Inc. earnings.
Contracts on the S&P 500 erased earlier gains, while those on the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 held on to positive territory after Apple posted record sales. European shares snapped three days of gains as investors shrugged off data showing economies in Spain and France grew more than expected. Retailers were a bright spot after Hennes & Mauritz AB’s profit beat estimates. An Asia-Pacific gauge rose for the first day in six as gains in Japan offset declines in China.
Stocks are poised for their worst month since the pandemic roiled markets in 2020, after being whiplashed this week by concerns about ebbing policy support as the Federal Reserve signaled aggressive tightening, geopolitical tensions and an uneven earnings season.
A dollar gauge ticked up, while Treasuries slipped.
Money markets are now pricing in nearly five Fed hikes this year following Chair Jerome Powell’s hawkish tone Wednesday. That’s up from three expected as recently as December.
“Really what we are seeing is historic intraday volatility,” Chris Murphy, co-head of derivatives strategy at Susquehanna International Group, said on Bloomberg Television. “It’s been a pretty amazing ride so far this year.”
The U.S. stock market is priced “quite aggressively” versus other developed nations as well as emerging markets, and valuations in the latter can be a tailwind rather than a headwind as in the U.S., Feifei Li, partner and CIO of equity strategies at Research Affiliates, said on Bloomberg Television.
Elsewhere, oil headed for a sixth weekly advance and gold nursed losses.
What to watch this week:
- Euro zone economic confidence, consumer confidence Friday.
- U.S. consumer income, University of Michigan consumer sentiment Friday.
For more market analysis, read our MLIV blog.
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