Highlights of the Global Market This Week: The Federal Reserve Releases Meeting Minutes, and Chinese Companies Listed in the US Led by Alibaba Announce Earnings Reports
Magical Investor
February 16, 2025
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The three major US stock indexes all recorded gains last week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 0.55% cumulatively, the S&P 500 Index increased by 1.47%, and the Nasdaq Composite Index went up by 2.58%.
US President Trump signed a presidential memorandum last Thursday, proposing to implement reciprocal tariffs, but it was not immediately put into effect, which boosted market sentiment to some extent.
On the other hand, although the two inflation data released last week-the Consumer Price Index (CPI) and the Producer Price Index (PPI)-were both higher than market expectations, the increase in the categories related to the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) in the US January PPI data was relatively moderate.
The PCE price index is the Federal Reserve's preferred inflation indicator.
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said at a congressional hearing last week that given the strong performance of the US economy, the Federal Reserve is not in a hurry to cut interest rates further.
The market currently expects that the Federal Reserve will remain on hold for a longer period and may not cut interest rates again until the fourth quarter.
The Federal Reserve will release the minutes of its January interest rate meeting on Wednesday, Eastern Time. Investors will then look for clues about future monetary policy trends from it.
The Reserve Bank of Australia, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, and the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey will all announce their latest interest rate decisions this week.
In terms of earnings reports, retail giant Walmart will release its earnings report before the market opens on Thursday, Eastern Time. This quarterly report will provide investors with new insights into the health of US consumer spending.
Wall Street is closely watching the trend of consumer spending, which accounts for more than two-thirds of US economic activity.
Matt Maley, Chief Market Strategist at Miller Tabak, said that as one of the most important consumer companies in the US, Walmart will be closely monitored.
"Not only their earnings data and outlook guidance, but more importantly, their views on consumers," Maley said.
Several Chinese companies listed in the US will release their fourth-quarter earnings reports this week.
Alibaba is probably the most noteworthy one, and the company will announce its earnings before the market opens on Thursday.
Alibaba is no longer just a company. It has already become a current popular symbol of Chinese assets. Moreover, it incorporates concepts such as AI and cloud servers, making it highly worthy of attention.
Alibaba's US-listed shares soared by more than 20% last week, mainly due to Apple's choice of it as the main partner for the development of "Apple Intelligence" in China. Meanwhile, Alibaba's increase so far this year has been close to 50%.
Besides,The US stock market was closed on Monday this week due to Presidents' Day.
Overview of Important Overseas Economic Events This Week (Eastern Time):
Monday (February 17th): The US stock market is closed. The eurozone's December seasonally adjusted trade balance is released.
Tuesday (February 18th): The Reserve Bank of Australia announces its interest rate decision. France's final January CPI, Canada's January CPI data, and Germany/eurozone's February ZEW economic sentiment index are released.
Wednesday (February 19th): The Reserve Bank of New Zealand announces its interest rate decision and monetary policy statement. The UK's January CPI data and the eurozone's December seasonally adjusted current account are released.
Thursday (February 20th): The Federal Reserve releases the minutes of its January monetary policy meeting. Germany's January PPI data, the US February Philadelphia Fed Manufacturing Index, the eurozone's preliminary February consumer confidence index, the US January Conference Board Leading Index, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas announces its interest rate decision, and the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey announces its interest rate decision are released.
Friday (February 21st): Japan's January CPI data, the preliminary February manufacturing/service/composite PMI for France/Germany/eurozone, the preliminary February manufacturing/service/composite PMI for the UK, the preliminary February S&P Global manufacturing/service/composite PMI for the US, and the final February University of Michigan consumer sentiment index for the US are released.