Stocks are on pace to close out 2023 on a strong note, as several major US market indexes recently set new highs for the year. Here is what’s helping drive the bullish action, and what to look for in the coming week.
MARKET RECAP
Despite new comments from Chairman Powell that the Fed is keeping its option open to once again raise rates later this month, major US market indexes added roughly 1% during the past week. That helped the S&P (9%), Dow (11%), and Nasdaq (9%) surge in November, pushing stocks broadly to or near 2023 highs. With earnings season slowing down, many investors appear to have focused their attention primarily on economic reports and how that may impact the FOMC’s next interest rate decision. To that point, Friday's forthcoming jobs report could help move markets. Among the few major market-moving reports driving stocks over the past week was Salesforce, whose positive Q3 earnings helped boost large caps and the tech sector. In commodity markets, oil prices continued their descent from the September peak, while gold prices surmounted $2,000.
| Past week | Year-to-date | 5-year | |
|---|---|---|---|
| S&P 500 | 0.8% | 19.7% | 64.6% |
| Oil (WTI crude) | –0.1% | –3.0% | 41.9% |
| Gold (New York) | 3.8% | 9.2% | 70.4% |
| Bitcoin | 3.6% |
132.5% |
913.0% |
Source: Fidelity.com, CNBC, as of December 1, 2023.
KEY DATA FOR THE WEEK OF 12/04/2023
The US November jobs report lands on Friday, plus Broadcom earnings may help shape the tech stock trade.
| Ferguson ( |
US motor vehicle sales – Monday |
| J M Smucker ( |
US factory orders – Monday |
| Toll Brothers ( |
International trade – Wednesday |
| Broadcom ( |
EIA petroleum report – Wednesday |
| Campbell Soup ( |
US weekly jobless claims – Thursday |
| Lululemon ( |
US employment report – Friday |
| See the full earnings calendar (login required). | See the full economic calendar. |
Source: Fidelity.com, as of December 1, 2023.
SCREEN OF THE WEEK
Here are 5 stocks from the Fidelity.com Stock Screener with a positive earnings surprise (30 days) of at least 29.5% and an EPS growth rate (3 year) of at least 16.9%, sorted by market cap, as of December 1, 2023:
- Mitsubishi UFJ Financial (
) - Shopify (
) - Snowflake (
) - Williams (
) - Cheniere Energy (
)