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Last Updated: 22-May-26 09:04 ET | Archive
Stock market set to keep climbing at today's open
Briefing.com Summary:
*The stock market is on track for a higher open, riding the support of its mega-cap stocks.
*Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the UAE are reportedly urging President Trump not to restart the war with Iran.
*Kevin Warsh will be sworn in as the new Fed Chair at an 11:00 a.m. ET ceremony.
There seems to be no stopping the equity market right now, which is on track for its eighth consecutive weekly gain. It has climbed a wall of worry regarding the Iran war like nobody's business, using the remarkably impressive Q1 earnings growth, the leadership of the mega-cap stocks, and the indefatigable run by the semiconductor stocks as stepping stones.
It has weathered rising interest rates and rising energy prices, mostly with a sense of aplomb, riding the belief that they are temporary distractions for an otherwise strong bull market wrapped up in the earnings growth momentum that is an offshoot of the AI growth momentum.
When a peace deal is struck, there is a prevailing expectation that the higher rates and higher energy prices will fade from the headline view and create an added rationale to keep this bull market running. That isn't a wild notion. We talked about how that could play out in our column posted to The Big Picture: A tactical and practical anti-war trade.
Currently, the S&P 500 futures are up 34 points and are trading 0.5% above fair value, the Nasdaq 100 futures are up 135 points and are trading 0.5% above fair value, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average futures are up 390 points and are trading 0.8% above fair value.
The underpinnings for those gains include positive responses to earnings reports from Workday (WDAY), Ross Stores (ROST), Zoom Communications (ZM), and Take-Two Interactive Software (TTWO), and modest gains for most of the mega-cap stocks, which is enough to carry the market on its own.
There is also a lot of chatter about the Iran situation that leans more in favor of diplomacy than military action.
Bloomberg reports that leaders from the UAE, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia have urged President Trump not to restart the war with Iran, fearing large disruptions to the regional economy due to retaliation by Iran. The past few days, meanwhile, have featured talk of progress toward a peace proposal, although it would be remiss not to mention that two of the biggest issues—Iran's hold on its enriched uranium and safe and free passage through the Strait of Hormuz—have yet to be resolved.
WTI crude prices are up 0.2% to $96.60/bbl, following a hopeful but tenuous course in front of the extended Memorial Day weekend for the U.S. The 10-yr note yield is down four basis points to 4.55%.
The 2-yr note yield is steady at 4.08%, standing at attention, so to speak, in front of the 11:00 a.m. ET ceremony for the swearing in of Kevin Warsh as Chairman of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors.
That ceremony will follow the release of the Leading Economic Index for April (Briefing.com consensus: -0.3%) and the final May reading for the University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index (Briefing.com consensus: 48.2) at 10:00 a.m. ET.
Consumer sentiment isn't close to being on the same page as the stock market when it comes to considering the economic view. The former is half empty, while the latter is nearly full, which will remain the case at today's open.
