Banner Week for Stocks as Fed Takes Center Stage
Fed Chair Jerome Powell hinted at lowered interest rates in the near future
It was a triumphant week for stocks, with the Dow within striking distance of new highs, and the S&P 500 hitting a record intraday high. This week's optimism was due, in large part, to dovish comments from Fed Chair Jerome Powell, sending expectations for a July rate cut skyrocketing. The Fed chatter also translated into a historic week for gold prices, and oil prices were back in the headlines, surging after a U.S. drone was allegedly shot down by Iranian operatives.
Pharma Stocks That Saw Red-Hot Rallies
Several drugmakers staged impressive rallies this week, including ArQule (ARQL) and Incyte (INCY), which took off on upbeat drug data. ContraVir Pharmaceuticals (CTRV) continued a red-hot win streak, too, after revealing impressive NASH drug data, while PhaseBio Pharmaceuticals (PHAS) made a big comeback after the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted its antiplatelet drug "breakthrough therapy" status. Meanwhile, analysts expect this pair of penny stocks to double.
4 Crypto Stocks That Caught Investors' Attention
With the launch of Facebook's (FB) cryptocurrency unveiling, Libra, a number of other e-pay names were capturing Wall Street's attention. Moneygram International (MGI) almost doubled on a blockchain deal with Ripple, and the launch of Libra had Net Element (NETE) kicking up dust too, after the firm said it would start accepting crytopcurrency payments on its cloud-based software. Meanwhile, blockchain rumors sent this retail stock higher on Friday.
China Stocks in the Spotlight
Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba (BABA) made news this week on record-breaking sales for its "6.18 Mid-Year Shopping Festival." Plus, several stocks were flashing historically bearish technical signals on the charts. Tech stock Momo (MOMO) ran into a key trendline, per data from Schaeffer's Senior Quantitative Analyst Rocky White, while seasonality suggested a short-term drop for these two China stocks.
G-20 Meeting, NKE, WBA Earnings on Tap Next Week
With Fed activity in the rear view, investors will turn their attention to next Friday's two-day G-20 summit meeting in Osaka, Japan, in which President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping will meet to discuss trade. Ahead of this, however, investors will digest the latest gross domestic product (GDP) estimate report and durable goods orders. On the earnings front, Dow names Nike (NKE) and Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA) will be in the spotlight, along with Micron (MU) and FedEx (FDX).