NEW YORK: US stocks advanced and the dollar firmed on Friday (Jul 25) as investors girded themselves for the week ahead, which includes a Federal Reserve policy meeting, crucial corporate results and US President Donald Trump’s Aug 1 deadline for negotiating trade deals.
“There’s increasing confidence that the economy won’t be derailed by tariffs,” said Thomas Martin, Senior Portfolio Manager at GLOBALT in Atlanta.
“In the meantime, companies are reporting good earnings, the economic numbers are coming in within the range and people want to own stocks. They don’t want to miss out.”
All three indexes closed in positive territory and notched weekly gains. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq logged fresh record closing highs, and the blue-chip Dow ended 0.25 per cent shy of its all-time closing level reached on Dec 24, 2024.
Gold lost some shine, pressured by the dollar as healthy risk appetites lured investors away from the safe-haven metal.
With Trump’s negotiating deadline just a week away, the US and its trading partners are scrambling to reach trade agreements, with European negotiators heartened by the deal with Japan announced on Tuesday.
Intel’s shares dropped 8.5 per cent after the chipmaker forecast steeper-than-expected quarterly losses and said it had halted or scrapped new factory projects in the US and Europe.
More than a third of the companies in the S&P 500 have posted results, 80 per cent of which have beaten estimates, according to LSEG data.
Analysts now expect year-on-year second-quarter earnings growth of 7.7 per cent, compared with the 5.8 per cent estimate as of Jul 1.
Four members of the Magnificent 7 group of Artificial Intelligence-related megacap stocks – Amazon, Apple, Meta and Microsoft are on next week’s earnings docket, and market participants will scrutinise the companies’ conference calls for signs that AI expenditures are beginning to pay off and whether tariff-related uncertainties continue to weigh on forward guidance.
US economic data released on Friday showed an unexpected decline in new orders for core capital goods, as companies hold back on big-ticket purchases amid the fog of ongoing trade talks.
The Fed is expected to convene next week for a two-day monetary policy meeting, which is expected to culminate in a decision to let its federal funds target rate stand in the 4.25 per cent to 4.50 per cent range. The meeting comes at a moment in which Fed Chair Jerome Powell is facing criticism from Trump for not cutting rates.
“The Fed is going to do what it’s going to do and Powell is going to stay in his job,” Martin added. “The economy is doing great, so they really don’t need to lower short-term interest rates.”
“Inflation is still a question, so they’re better off not lowering rates if they don’t have to,” Martin said.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 208.01 points, or 0.47 per cent, to 44,901.92, the S&P 500 rose 25.30 points, or 0.40 per cent, to 6,388.65, and the Nasdaq Composite rose 50.36 points, or 0.24 per cent, to 21,108.32.
European shares settled lower as market participants parsed mixed corporate earnings and awaited developments in the US-EU trade negotiations.
The US dollar gained strength but remained on course for its biggest drop in a month as investors focused on economic data, tariff negotiations and central bank meetings on the calendar for next week.
The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of currencies including the yen and the euro, rose 0.23 per cent to 97.68, with the euro down 0.11 per cent at US$1.1741.
Against the Japanese yen, the dollar strengthened 0.44 per cent to 147.65.
In cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin fell 1.66 per cent to US$116,805.28. Ethereum declined 2.52 per cent to US$3,645.63.
Oil prices softened as investors mulled downbeat economic news and signs of growing supply, despite optimism that U.S. trade deals could boost global economic growth.
US crude fell 1.32 per cent to $65.16 per barrel, while Brent fell to US$68.44 per barrel, down 1.07 per cent on the day.
Gold prices dropped in opposition to the firming dollar, amid signs of progress in US.-EU trade talks.
Spot gold fell 0.9 per cent to US$3,337.66 an ounce. US gold futures fell 1.24 per cent to US$3,329.10 an ounce.
