Stocks Up For The Second Week In A Row  Image: Bigstock Stocks closed up on Friday, with new all-time highs made by the Dow and the S&P. The big three were also up for the week, making it the second week in a row for the Dow, S&P and Nasdaq.
Stocks have been lifted by a stellar Q2 earnings season. One of the best parts of this earnings season, aside from the impressive sales and earnings that many companies have reported, were the robust outlooks they presented for Q3 and beyond. That suggests a lot more upside to go. Earnings season is winding down with 'only' 566 companies reporting this week. And then just 193 next week. But what an earnings season it's been so far. The economy has also impressed. Although, the recent rise in inflation, even though it's believed to be transitory, doesn't change the fact that it is a present factor here and now. And that's believed to have weighed on the recent Consumer Sentiment report which came in at 70.2 vs. last month's 81.2 and views for 81.4. As the enhanced unemployment benefits expire in September, that will start to usher in millions of new workers into the labor force, and begin to ease the labor shortage, and supply chain disruptions as well. It won't happen overnight. But once we start seeing some relief, that should beef up the sentiment. With the Senate having passed the infrastructure bill, and the $3.5 trillion budget resolution framework, the next step is for the House to vote on it. The House will break their recess early and come back on August 23rd to take up those measures. In the meantime, stocks continue to trade at or near their all-time highs. And with the economy continuing to rebound, that bodes well for even higher highs in stocks. So make sure you're taking full advantage of it. See you tomorrow,  Kevin Matras
Executive Vice President, Zacks Investment Research | 
没有评论:
发表评论