A dearth of economic data last week kept markets focused on the Fed and the earnings of Nvidia, the leading AI chipmaker. Fed minutes language have not changed much since the start of 2024.

U.S. equity markets took a breather from their recent rally as the S&P 500 broke its six-week stretch of consecutive gains in response to hotter-than-expected inflation readings that pushed rate cut expectations further down the road.

Last week the S&P 500 broke above the 5,000 level with support from well-received corporate earnings announcements and additional signs of U.S. economic resilience. It was less than three years ago, April 2021, that it hit 4,000.

Stocks extended their record-setting run last week with the S&P 500 and the Dow closing Friday at record highs as a blockbuster jobs report bolstered the outlook for corporate profits.

The S&P 500 halted a six-day winning streak on Friday but ended positive for the week. Five of those six days, the S&P 500 had closed at fresh all-time highs. Economic data largely supported a healthy soft-landing outlook, somewhat tainted by several less-than-ideal earnings.