The long-awaited binge of quarterly reports is finally here. So far, the earnings picture has been mixed at best. Last Friday saw the beginning of the critical first-quarter earnings season, and this week, the pace of reporters quickened. Over the last few weeks, investors have been looking for a sign of just how the U.S. and global economy are proceeding. Unfortunately, the number of reports released so far has thrown questions into the air. The uneasiness continued to swing stocks back and forth over the shortened trading week.
A lack of important data this week also didn’t help the situation as traders couldn’t grasp on to concrete economic data to help make their decisions. Likewise, the absence of a trade deal between the U.S. and China stymied market direction. No major corporate actions occurred either.
The truth is, stocks were in a rut and continued the ebbing and flowing of the last few months. That made for some choppy and low-volume trading during the shortened week. In the end, traders seemed more concerned with the long weekend and what the remainder of the first quarter-earnings announcements will report.
Be sure to check out our previous Wrap here, when a new trade threat emerged.
