Global economic updates, market sentiment, and financial headlines.
The market capitalization of the S&P 500 shrank in the first quarter of 2026. Picking up from our Fall 2025 snapshot, when the index's market cap was $59.32 trillion, as of the end of 2026-Q1, it has fallen nearly 1.5% to $58.44 trillion for this Spring 2026 snapshot.
Lower immigration has brought labor supply in line with shaky demand, but economists worry that such a slow-moving job market is at risk of toppling over.
Federal Reserve Bank of New York President John Williams discusses the Fed's view of private credit on 'The Claman Countdown.' #fox #media #us #usa #new #news #foxbusiness #economy #finance #federalreserve #fed #banking #markets #risk #investing #business #newyork #ny #money #credit #analysis #economic #policy
US stock benchmarks rebound slightly with President Trump still attempting to calm markets. Oil prices are still playing tricks on broader sentiment, with the conflict now entering its fifth week.
Consensus for the March employment report includes a historically sluggish NFP rebound (+50,000 to +65,000) and sticky Average Hourly Earnings (+0.3% to +0.4%). A "stagflation shock" (low jobs growth under 50k plus high wages over +0.5%) is the worst-case scenario for the Dow Jones, as it traps the Fed from cutting rates.
Fundraising in the first quarter hit $86 billion under the impact of private-markets worries and war.
As Q1 2026 comes to a close, we follow up on an article we published last week on buybacks by analyzing corporations' other favorite way to return value to shareholders. The percentage of companies increasing dividends in Q1 was the highest level since Q1 2019 (45%).
Consumers are feeling pain at the pump, but the U.S. is faring better than other parts of the world. How long can the economy hold out?
The stock market overcame a steep early slide to mostly finish higher. All three major indexes marked a weekly gain for the first time in six weeks.
'Mad Money' host Jim Cramer looks ahead to next week's market game plan.
The recent attacks in the Persian Gulf could further constrain supplies of industrial metals.
U.S. President Donald Trump ordered 100% tariffs on certain branded pharmaceutical imports and overhauled steel, aluminum and copper duties on Thursday as his administration sought to move on from the collapse of the broad global tariffs he announced exactly one year ago.
The stock market notched hearty weekly gains despite a volatile session Thursday after President Donald Trump issued a warning to Iran. Some inflation readings and the Fed minutes are now due.
The S&P 500 Index is in a downtrend and has broken multiple support levels. It finally closed below its –4σ “modified Bollinger band,” which eventually set up a McMillan volatility band buy signal (green “B” on the SPX chart below).
Federal Reserve Bank of New York President John Williams discusses market impacts of the Iran War, inflation outlook and more on ‘The Claman Countdown.'
Marley Kayden and Sam Vadas cap a short trading week filled with volatility by turning to headlines investors likely missed on Thursday's session. They explain the sell-off in travel stocks caused by the most recent crude oil spike and highlight why tariffs are back in Wall Street's spotlight.
The president's pledge to hit Iran ‘extremely hard' sends the U.S. oil benchmark flying into holiday weekend.
Comprehensive cross-platform coverage of the U.S. market close on Bloomberg Television, Bloomberg Radio, and YouTube with Scarlet Fu, Katie Greifeld, Carol Massar and Tim Stenovec. -------- More on Bloomberg Television and Markets Like this video?
S&P 500 earnings are expected to climb 13.2% year over year in the first quarter, a FactSet report Friday said. That would make it the sixth consecutive quarter of double-digit growth.
Investors headed into the long holiday weekend on edge about a global oil shock that could get worse, after President Donald Trump's televised address offered no clear path to a resolution with Iran.
US stocks closed slightly mixed on Thursday after paring deeper losses, as diplomatic signals from the Middle East helped calm markets rattled earlier by President Donald Trump's threats of tougher action against Iran ahead of the long holiday weekend. Investor sentiment steadied in the afternoon after Iran's foreign ministry said it was drafting a protocol with Oman to manage traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, while Britain noted that dozens of countries were discussing ways to end the crisis.
Ed Yardeni, Yardeni Research, joins 'Closing Bell' to talk why he believes the market bottom is in and why he is sticking to his thesis even with Thursday's volatility.
The 3-Month Treasury Bill Yield to Junk Bond Spread ratio has reliably predicted every recession since 1997 without false positives. This indicator recently broke below its 100-period weekly moving average and rebounded, signaling a potential recession in the coming months.
Markets are closed Friday, but we'll still get the March jobs report in the morning. Nicole Bachaud and John Blank both agree that "30,000 is the new zero" when it comes to job improvement, believing persistent inflation raises the bar for employment.
CNBC host Jim Cramer warned on Thursday that surging crude prices could trigger a painful equity selloff, arguing that oil's parabolic move under President Donald Trump risks a 20% stock market drawdown.
Spoiler: Not great
The administration announced new levies and made changes to existing tariffs for two industries that have proved influential on the president's trade policy.
Bullish sentiment increased 1.5 percentage points to 33.6%. Neutral sentiment decreased 3.1 percentage points to 15.0%.
The U.S. economy is projected to show job gains of 59,000 for the month, an anemic rate by the standards of previous years this decade but enough to keep the unemployment rate at 4.4%. With the changes to the workforce, it's requiring ever-smaller payroll growth to keep the jobless rate steady.
Investors are heading into the first long weekend since the war in Iran began, and they have reason to be anxious.
I remain bullish on tech and gold for Q2 2026, expecting rebounds as the U.S.-Iran conflict stabilizes and market fear subsides. The SaaSpocalypse is overdone; software firms, especially AI-native names like Zeta Global (ZETA), offer compelling recovery potential as earnings remain resilient.
Despite the holiday-shortened week , Wall Street was not short on drama to wrap up March and welcome in April.
Several energy stocks exit the IBD 50 after their March rally as oil prices cool and investors await a truce between the U.S. and Iran.
Inflation, Not Growth, Is the Issue—For Now Keep your eyes on real yields for signs of the economy's health Oil-driven inflation fears have investors increasingly convinced the Fed won't be cutting interest rates anytime soon—a sentiment shift that's pushed bond yields higher in recent weeks.
Dallas Federal Reserve President Lorie Logan said on Thursday that U.S. oil producers are unlikely to boost output and shield consumers from higher gasoline prices any time soon.
Markets rebounded for their best day of the year earlier this week, led by the tech-heavy NASDAQ, which gained more than 3% in a single session.
The first full week of April will focus on a number of highly anticipated inflation readings, including February's personal consumption index (PCE) and consumer price index (CPI).
A recovery on Thursday may be a sign that investors are looking beyond oil above $110 a barrel. What to own now.
The biotech sector, tracked by the iShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB), remained flat in early 2026, despite broader market declines and volatility. Recent high buyout premium M&A activity, including Biogen's $5.6B Apellis acquisition, fueled sector outperformance and an uptick in investor enthusiasm.
The outlook for the U.S. economy has deteriorated rapidly in the past two weeks, according to an out-of-the-ordinary survey conducted by the National Association for Business Economists.
Before President Trump even started speaking Wednesday night, investors had already factored in a swift end to the crisis.
The average rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage rose this week to 6.46%, according to the latest Freddie Mac data released Thursday. That is up from last week's reading of 6.38%.
Weakness rarely stays contained. It often begins in more vulnerable market corners, such as software, before quietly spreading.
Anthony Gardner, former U.S. Ambassador to the EU, discusses theIran war and President Donald Trump's address to the nation.
The most oversold stocks in the consumer staples sector presents an opportunity to buy into undervalued companies.
With the S&P 500, Nasdaq-100, and Dow Jones all below their 200-day SMA, @CharlesSchwab's Nathan Peterson analyzes price action and its correlation to crude oil's spike. Options activity in the S&P and VIX are what Nate believes serve as the most important indicators traders need to watch.
Challenger, Gray & Christmas said tech layoffs are rising and are likely to keep happening. The outplacement firm said that in tech, AI is replacing jobs.
Britain said on Thursday it had agreed the full text of a U.S.-UK pharmaceutical partnership, setting out terms under which British-made medicines would enter the United States tariff-free.
U.S. President Donald Trump's address to the nation on Wednesday, in which he vowed more aggressive strikes on Iran, has put consumers on course for record fuel prices at the pumps just ahead of the country's peak summer travel season, market experts said.