Today investors will be waiting for the release of Nvidia’s earnings while yesterday the big news revolved around Microsoft. The tech giant’s shares soared more than 2% after the company hired Sam Altman as its new CEO of the AI unit.
Minutes From the Last Fed Meeting to be Released Today
The trading week will be shorter than usual due to the Thanksgiving holiday in the US. As a result, not much economic data is expected to be released.
The market has been largely focused on what the Federal Reserve (Fed) will do concerning the interest rate at its next meeting. In that sense, the minutes of the last meeting, that will be released today, will be the centre of attention for investors.
Fed Expected to Keep Rates Stable in December
Investors have almost completely priced in the likelihood that the Fed will keep interest rates unchanged in December. Odds that the next step will be a cut, probably in early summer of next year, are also increasing.
This better monetary policy scenario has led to the improvement of investors' risk sentiment and rises in the stock market during November.
Microsoft Shares Rose More Than 2% Yesterday
Yesterday the main North American indices continued to rise, this time driven by technology companies such as Microsoft (MSF). The tech giant announced that Sam Altman was joining the company as CEO of the AI unit after being surprisingly fired from Open AI. This gave Microsoft shares a boost as investors believed that hiring Altman would give the company a competitive advantage in the AI race. Microsoft shares rose more than 2% yesterday.
Microsoft daily chart over six months, November 21, 2023. Source: CAPEX.com WebTrader.
Nvidia to Release Earnings Report Today
Today the market will also focus on the earnings release of Nvidia (NVDA), another technology company also involved in the AI sector.
News of Oil Cuts Brought Crude Oil Up
In the commodities market, crude oil rose more than 6% between Friday and yesterday. The rise came after Reuters reported, citing sources, that OPEC+ may consider additional cuts in oil supply during its meeting on November 26.
OPEC+ has been making these kinds of decisions since late 2022. It has already made total oil production cuts of around 5 million barrels per day, or around 5% of daily global demand.
In any case, there is a considerable number of sector analysts who believe it is unlikely that a decision of this nature will be made. They believe these are simply statements intended to stop the recent fall in crude oil that has been happening because of a drop in global demand.
Key Takeaways
- Fed meeting minutes to be released today.
- Interest rates are expected to remain unchanged in December.
- Rate cuts expected for early summer 2024.
- Shares of Microsoft rose more than 2% after hiring Sam Altman as CEO of the AI unit.
- Nvidia to release earnings report today.
- Crude oil rose more than 6% since Friday after news that OPEC+ may consider more oil cuts.
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Sources: Bloomberg, Reuters
