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Fed decision and AI earnings put pressure on a wobbly S&P 500

Brent crude jumped to $100 a barrel, adding inflation and rate-hike pressure ahead of the Fed meeting.

Reported · Written up by our desk · Indices

A wobbly U.S. stock market is entering the week with investors focused on the Federal Reserve meeting for clues on the interest rate path, and on a heavy schedule of corporate earnings led by technology and artificial intelligence-related companies, according to Reuters as carried by LiveMint Markets.

Major equity indexes ended the week lower, dragged by steep declines in Alphabet and Tesla after their quarterly reports, with attention turning to results next week from other “AI hyperscalers” including Microsoft, Amazon and Meta Platforms.

Despite the recent stumble, the S&P 500 remains up more than 8% in 2026, though strategists said sentiment looks fragile, noting investors may react negatively to any signs of imperfection.

Oil prices are also in focus, with Brent crude hitting $100 a barrel, which has fueled concerns that policymakers may need to be more aggressive to rein in inflation that has stayed well above the Fed’s 2% target; Fed funds futures on Friday showed a 38% chance of a 0.25 percentage point rate increase, though some uncertainty remains over how the new chair, Kevin Warsh, communicates policy.

Latest closeWTI crude $90.47 ▼1.9%|Brent $98.38 ▼2.3%|S&P 500 7,411.98 ▲0.1%

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