Weekly Market Update – February 2, 2026

Price Return Last Week

S&P 500  +0.3%  S&P Mid Cap  (1.4%)    Russell 2000  (2.1%) 

MSCI EAFE +1.6%     MSCI EM +1.8%   

10 Yr US Treasury Rate – unchanged at 4.24%

Source: Refinitiv Eikon

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Recent News

Fed Chair Nomination – President Trump announced on Friday that he had chosen former Federal Reserve Governor Kevin Warsh to lead the Federal Reserve following the end of Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s term in May.  While Warsh has historically been known as someone concerned about elevated levels of inflation, he has recently called for the Fed to lower rates more quickly as he expects the productivity growth from artificial intelligence to help reduce inflation.  Warsh has also critiqued the Fed for excessive banking regulations and a bloated balance sheet.  Confirming Warsh’s nomination may prove challenging with a closely divided Congress.  Republican Senator Thom Tillis has repeatedly stated that he will oppose the confirmation of any nominee until the Department of Justice inquiry into Jerome Powell is resolved.

Source: Thomson Reuters

Fed Meeting – The Federal Reserve chose to keep interest rates at the same level of 3.50%-3.75% on Wednesday.  Of the 12 Fed policymakers, 10 voted to hold rates steady and two voted to lower rates.  Fed Governor’s Christopher Waller and Stephen Miran were the dissenting voters that recommended reducing interest rates.  At the time of the vote, Waller was seen as a potential candidate for Fed Chair.  Current Fed Chair Jerome Powell noted that the economy has been stronger than expected and that he expects the impact from tariffs implemented in 2025 to fade by the middle of the year.   

Source: Thomson Reuters

S&P Hits 7,000 – The S&P 500 stock market index breached the 7,000 mark for the first time ever on Wednesday.  It has been roughly 14 months since the index first crossed the 6,000 market.

Source: Thomson Reuters

Core PPI – Dec: 0.7% (Reuters Poll est. 0.2%) Nov: 0.0%

The month-over-month change in the core producer price (PPI) index rose 0.7% in December, representing the second largest monthly increase in nearly four years.  This was far higher than the estimate of 0.2% and above the largest economist forecast at 0.4%.  A portion of this report is used to determine the personal consumption expenditure (PCE) price index, leading some to raise estimates for the December PCE report.

Source: The Wall Street Journal, Refinitiv Eikon

Defying the Odds – The New England Patriots will face the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl LX on Sunday.  This will be the first time in over forty years that two teams with preseason Super Bowl odds of 50-1 or longer will compete against each other in the Super Bowl.

Source: CBS Sports

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Upcoming Events

2/2 – ISM Manufacturing PMI, Notable Earnings Reports: Walt Disney, Aptiv, Pepsico, Palantir

2/3 – Notable Earnings Reports: WW Grainger, Illinois Tool Works, Archer-Daniels-Midland, Merck, Pfizer, PayPal, Chubb, AMD, Amgen, Emerson Electric, Prudential, Super Micro Computer, Match Group, Corteva, Mondelez, Chipotle

2/4 – ISM Non-Manufacturing PMI, Notable Earnings Reports: Equifax, Yum! Brands, Cognizant, Eli Lilly, Old Dominion Freight Line, Johnson Controls, Phillips 66, CDW, Fortive, Uber, GE Healthcare, Kenvue, Bunge, Abbvie, Aflac, Align Technology, McKesson, MetLife, Qualcomm, Alphabet

2/5 – Notable Earnings Reports: Linde, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Intercontinental Exchange, Amazon

2/6 – Jobs Report, Consumer Sentiment

Source: Refinitiv Eikon