Rate decisions from the Fed, ECB and Bank of Japan share the week with earnings from Alphabet, Amazon and Microsoft. Elections in Brazil and Israel, a British budget and a Chinese party gathering add political risk.
The Federal Reserve, European Central Bank and Bank of Japan announce policy decisions this week, while investors gauge whether Alphabet, Amazon and Microsoft results can fuel the next leg of the AI rally.
Central banks take the stage
The Fed, Bank of Canada and Reserve Bank of New Zealand meet on Wednesday, the ECB on Thursday, and the BOJ a day later. The Fed, ECB and BOJ face no immediate pressure to hike rates after tightening last month.
Fed Chair Kevin Warsh will be pressed on his view on the rate outlook. The ECB is sure to face questions about surging French borrowing costs, and the BOJ may raise its inflation forecasts in a post-meeting report.
Markets expect Canada and New Zealand to hike rates to contain inflation, as policymakers grapple with the extent to which high oil will fuel broader price pressures.
Hyperscalers report as data centre worries grow
Alphabet, Microsoft and Amazon, three of the so-called hyperscalers, post results while investors grow wary of the risks of spending on data centres. The week will be critical to determining if the third quarter lived up to high expectations for US profit growth, with about one-third of S&P 500 companies reporting.
Elections and a budget add political risk
In Britain, finance minister John Healey announces his first budget on Wednesday. Analysts polled by Reuters think he can let his headroom almost halve to around £15 billion ($20 billion) without spooking the market.
Israel votes on Tuesday, and polls have the race as a coin toss. Since 2023's October 7 attacks, the Tel Aviv stock market has surged more than 135%, while the shekel is up 25%.
Brazil's markets, meanwhile, are set for a volatile restart after President Lula's re-election on Sunday. Separately, China's top leadership gathers in Beijing for the four-day Fifth Plenum from Monday.
Source: Reuters via Investing.com
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