Markets today: a quiet open before the Fed and Big Tech earnings

Wall Street opens a loaded week on a quiet Tuesday. The Federal Reserve announces its rate decision Wednesday afternoon, and by the close of trading Friday, four of the largest U.S. companies will have reported results: Microsoft, Meta Platforms, Apple and Amazon. Today does the warm-up. Second-tier economic data fills the morning and five companies report, with little on the schedule likely to set the tone for the whole tape before the main events arrive.

On the calendar today

The morning is busy but second-tier. It opens with the ADP weekly employment reading at 8:15 a.m. ET, followed 15 minutes later by an 8:30 a.m. ET batch led by the advance goods-trade balance (forecast −$100 billion, prior −$105.9 billion), with wholesale inventories (0.2% expected against 0.1%) and retail inventories alongside. The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller home price index lands at 9:00 a.m. ET, with a 1.3% annual gain expected against 1.1% previously. The Conference Board’s consumer confidence index is the day’s headline number, due at 10:00 a.m. ET (forecast 92.3, prior 91.2). After the close, the API’s weekly crude oil inventory estimate is due at 4:30 p.m. ET (a draw of 2.5 million barrels expected, against a prior build of 2.6 million).

Reporting today

Five companies Bellwize covers report Tuesday. The list: Boeing, Ford, Coca-Cola, PayPal and Visa.

Backdrop

Stocks finished Monday split. The S&P 500 edged up 0.02% to 7,413.18 and the Dow rose 0.51% to 52,210.08, while the Nasdaq Composite slipped 0.18% to 24,932.08. The 10-year Treasury yield eased to 4.69%, and the Cboe Volatility Index finished at 18.98.

The week ahead

The rest of the week is dense.

• Wednesday: the Fed’s rate decision at 2:00 p.m. ET, followed by the Chair’s press conference at 2:30 p.m. ET; earnings from Microsoft, Meta Platforms and Procter & Gamble.
• Thursday: the advance reading of second-quarter GDP, the core PCE price index, and personal income and spending, all at 8:30 a.m. ET; earnings from Apple, Amazon and Mastercard.
• Friday: no major economic releases; earnings from Exxon Mobil, AbbVie and Chevron.

What to watch

Consumer confidence at 10:00 a.m. ET is the clearest read on the household mood before the Fed meets, and it arrives an hour after the Case-Shiller index updates on home prices. Together they are the day’s main data on the U.S. consumer. Two payments names report today, Visa and PayPal, alongside consumer-staples bellwether Coca-Cola. Energy is the other thread. Crude oil has drawn steady attention across the overnight wires, and the API’s weekly inventory estimate is the one supply reading on today’s calendar, after the 4:00 p.m. close.

This is a general-market summary for information only — not investment advice, and not a recommendation regarding any security.