“The rise in bond yields over the past two months has essentially acted like a rate hike, since it’s raised consumer borrowing costs across the board. Investors will be looking for commentary from the Federal Reserve on how the oil price spike, which is showing few signs of abating, may affect….”

“With earnings season underway, fundamentals are back, a welcome development for stocks, which have been tethered to the price of oil for much of the past two months.”

“Big tech earnings will help to confirm whether or not the sector’s share price gains in recent weeks are justified….The big tech stock correction that started prior to the Iran war has just about run its course, and valuations are back to elevated levels.”

“With earnings season underway, fundamentals are back, which is a welcome development for stocks, which have been tethered to the price of oil for much of the past two months.”

“Friday’s quadruple witching tends to bring about increased intra-day volatility, which may be exacerbated this time around as this stock market has already been on edge for weeks heading into Friday, given uncertainty from the Middle East conflict and what higher oil prices may mean for consumer spending and earnings.”

“The stock market remains in negative territory for the year, and has made new 2026 lows this week, which suggests that the market may not have yet found its bottom and is still in the process of sorting out and pricing in the duration of the Middle East conflict and oil price outlook.”

“Some investors can be hesitant to maintain their positions heading into the weekend when more negative headlines from the Middle East can emerge.”

“The broadening of the market is happening while the stock market seems to be range-bound. These fears are on both ends of the spectrum, with worries about too much AI hype and excess valuations, and fears that AI will eliminate or curtail industries like cybersecurity or software.”

“These fears are on both ends of the spectrum, with worries about too much AI hype and excess valuations, and fears that AI will eliminate or curtail industries like cybersecurity or software.”

“This week’s earnings will either calm or exacerbate fears about AI. We won’t have all of the answers this week, but worried investors are hungry for clarity.”