all unveiled earnings for the first quarter that blew past analysts’ forecasts. Much of the surge was due to expectations for a rapidly improving economy, which allowed banks to free up reserves held in case loans went bad, as well as strong trading revenue.The better-than-expected results didn’t give all the bank stocks a uniform pop, though. Goldman Sachs rallied 2.3%, but JPMorgan Chase fell 1.9%. Wells Fargo jumped 5.5%, but only after swerving from an early-morning loss to a gain.
Stocks in recent earnings seasons have been failing to get as big a bounce as they usually do after reporting better-than-expected results. Analysts say it’s probably a result of how much stock prices have already rallied on expectations for the strong growth. The S&P 500 has soared roughly 85% since hitting a bottom in March 2020, even as the pandemic crunched profits for companies through last year.
Wednesday’s encouraging start to earnings season dovetails with several reports showing the economy is kicking into a higher gear as more widespread COVID-19 vaccinations and tremendous financial support from the U.S. government and Federal Reserve work through the system. The expectations for a stronger economy, though, are also leading to worries about higher inflation. If inflation were to climb and stay higher, it could send bond prices tumbling, erode profits for companies and trigger volatility across markets worldwide.more in March than economists expected, but investors largely took it in stride.
Low rates engineered by the Federal Reserve have been one of the central reasons for the stock market’s surge over the last year.Fed Chair Jerome H. Powell said again Wednesday that the central bank will hold off on raising interest rates until the job market has fully healed, inflation has reached 2% and indications show inflation is on track to stay moderately above 2% for some time.
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