A Recap of the Federal Open Market Committee's October 2014 Meeting

The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) ended QE3 in October.

Statement
U.S. Financial Market Indexes Up For The October 31 Week; FOMC Ends QE3

On November 19, it released its meeting minutes from October.

Meeting minutes
With Wary Eye on Global Tumult, Fed Opted to Stay on Policy Path for Now

The new focus will now be on when the FOMC will increase rates.
U.S. Market’s Focus Turns To Rate Increase

Third Quarter Financial Sector Earnings

This week a number of financial companies will report their third quarter earnings including three companies in the Dow Jones Industrial Average. JPMorgan will report results on Tuesday followed by American Express on Wednesday and Goldman Sachs on Thursday.

Some key trends to watch in the banking sector include the following:

5 Trends To Watch In This Week’s Bank Earnings

More details on American Express and credit card businesses can also be found here:

American Express Q3 Earnings Preview: Key Trends That Will Impact Performance

Credit Card Company Weekly Notes – MasterCard, Visa And American Express

The FOMC's September 16-17 Meeting Minutes

September 16-17 Meeting Minutes

August 8, 2014: U.S. Equity Markets End the Week Higher

DJIA +0.35%
S&P 500 +0.32%

A few good reads on this week's geopolitical activity: 

Ukraine: Market Rising on Hint of Easing Tension in Ukraine

Middle East: U.S. Launches Airstrikes in Iraq

Markets Reaching New Highs In 2014

Markets Reaching New Highs In 2014

U.S. Equity Market Recap for the Week of April 25

U.S. equity markets were down slightly for the week ending April 25. The S&P 500 fell 0.08% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) was down 0.28%. The Russell 3000 which represents the broad U.S. market was down 0.21%. Large-cap outperformed small-cap for the week shown by a -0.11% loss in the Russell 1000 versus a -1.31% loss in the Russell 2000. Technology stocks were also down for the week represented by the NASDAQ Composite Index which fell 0.49%.

The DJIA which traded evenly for the week was down only 0.28% and saw a number of earnings reports that influenced valuations within the index. Exxon Mobil, United Technologies, AT&T, McDonald’s, Travelers, Boeing, Procter & Gamble, 3M, Caterpillar, Microsoft, Verizon and Visa were among the DJIA companies reporting earnings during the April 25 week.

Microsoft’s earnings were a Dow 30 highlight for the week as Satya Nadella gave his first earnings report as CEO and followers were interested in additional information on the Nokia deal which reportedly closed on April 25.

Broader economic factors also influenced the market during the week. On Monday April 21 the Conference Board reported its Leading Economic Indicators Index which showed improvement for the U.S. economy in March. Broad market improvements could indicate increases ahead in U.S. market valuations.

U.S. Credit Market Recap for the Week of April 25

For the week ending April 25, U.S. credit markets saw a decrease in yields. The one-year nominal U.S. Treasury yield was unchanged at 0.11%. The 10-year and 30-year nominal Treasury yields were both slightly lower. The 10-year yield fell to 2.68% from 2.73% in the previous week. Meanwhile, the 30-year Treasury yield was also lower at 3.45% down from 3.52% in the previous week.

During the week increased risks from issues between Russia and the Ukraine pushed investors to seek shelter in U.S. Treasury safe havens, according to T. Rowe Price. Treasury prices increased and yields decreased as a result.

For the long-term market speculators expect longer-term yields to increase slightly as the Federal Reserve tapers its asset purchasing program and gets closer to an increase in the federal funds rate.