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US markets closed higher on Friday, capping off their best week of the whole year. Investors are feeling optimistic about strong consumer sentiment data, interest rate cuts and incoming President Trump's pro-growth policies. All of those should lead to wider corporate profits next year. The S&P 500 rose for the fourth day in a row, hitting its 50th record high of 2024 and posting a weekly gain of 4.7%.

In company news, Tesla's surge pushed its market value back above the $1 trillion mark. Elsewhere, Under Armour fell 13% despite reporting results that beat expectations, as founder Kevin Plank continues to wrestle with its cost base. Finally, Pinterest shares dropped 14% due to a weak sales forecast for the holiday quarter, as it battles to keep up with larger competitors like Meta Platforms and Snap.

On Friday, the JSE All-share fell 1.02%, but the S&P 500 rose 0.38%, and the Nasdaq rose by a whisker, just 0.09%.

US markets reached new all-time highs last night, buoyed by the Federal Reserve's latest interest rate cut. Jay Powell announced a 25 basis point trim to rates, as expected. The S&P 500 neared the 6 000-point mark, setting its 49th record of the year. Bank stocks calmed down, with a key index slipping 2.7% after a strong 10% rally the day before.

In after-hours trading, Expedia shares rose 5.2% on good earnings but Airbnb fell 4.5%, amidst mixed forecasts for the upcoming holiday season. Finally, Match Group shareholders cried about Tinder's earnings miss last quarter, but cheered up as Hinge beat estimates. Shares still dropped 17.9%. Ghosted.

Here's the lowdown, the JSE All-share was up 0.78%, the S&P 500 rose another 0.74%, and the Nasdaq jumped 1.51% higher. We are long and strong.

US markets soared to record highs yesterday, with the S&P 500 jumping 2.5% - its best performance ever for the day after an election. The rally came as Kamala Harris conceded to Donald Trump, signaling a time of policies favouring lower taxes and looser regulation, which investors expect to boost corporate earnings. Banks and oil stocks rose, and large tech companies facing antitrust problems soared.

In company news, Tesla went up by 14.9% on "good vibes" since Trump and Musk are now firm buddies. Elsewhere, fraud-accused Super Micro Computer failed again to file quarterly results, so its shares crashed another 18.1%. If you like chip stocks don't be greedy, just own Nvidia.

After a tumultuous day, the JSE All-share was down 1.52%, but the S&P 500 rose 2.53%, and the Nasdaq flew 2.95% higher. Can you see why we always advise you to be fully invested at times like these?

US shares posted solid gains yesterday as markets held their breath for the votes to roll in. All US polls are now closed and Trump has a commanding lead. The market has reacted positively with US futures moving higher, a stronger US dollar, lower gold prices and Bitcoin reaching record levels.

In company news, data management company Palantir jumped 23% on better than expected results. They noted higher demand in the US for their security analytics and artificial intelligence software. At the other end of the spectrum, chemicals company Celanese Corp dropped 26% after reporting poor numbers.

In summary, the JSE All-share closed up 0.81%, but the S&P 500 rose by 1.23%, and the Nasdaq ended 1.43% higher. More to come tonight? Probably.

Yesterday, US markets struggled to find momentum, but bonds gained some ground. Election polls still show a tight race, and markets don't like uncertainty. The Mag7 was mostly unchanged, but the real estate and energy sectors were in the green.

In company news, data from Viking Therapeutics and AstraZeneca hinted at growing competition in the obesity drug market, putting pressure on stocks in the weight-loss sector. On a brighter note, Peloton received a rare buy rating from Bank of America, which upgraded the stock by two notches, citing a stronger profit outlook and positive expectations for the company under its new CEO.

At the close, the JSE All-share was up a tiny 0.03%, the S&P 500 fell 0.28%, and the Nasdaq was 0.33% lower.

US markets saw an end of week comeback, with the S&P 500 breaking a two-day losing streak thanks to strong performances from key industry players. Tech giants, which had taken the hardest hit, led the rally, with Amazon in particular jumping 6.2% following strong earnings results.

In company news, Nvidia will join the Dow Jones Industrial Average on the 8th of November, replacing Intel. Elsewhere, Apple has reached an agreement to buy the photo-editing app Pixelmator, but the purchase price was too small to disclose.

On Friday, the JSE All-share was up 0.95%, the S&P 500 rose 0.41%, and the Nasdaq was 0.80% higher.

US markets ended lower yesterday as tech stocks took the day off. The S&P 500 had a rough session and the whole month's gains were wiped out, breaking what would have been its longest streak of monthly advances since 2021. Halloween is always on the last day of October, and this one delivered more tricks than treats.

In company-specific news, Apple shares dropped 1.9% following softer-than-expected sales in China. Elsewhere, Amazon rallied 6% on a strong outlook that impressed investors. Lastly, Booking hit a record high after the travel company blew away estimates. Shares rose 4.8%.

In short, the JSE All-share was down 1.58%, the S&P 500 fell 1.86%, and the Nasdaq was 2.76% lower. Sies!

US markets started well but ended lower last night, with chipmakers leading the decline. Earnings season is in full swing with quarterly numbers being reported left, right and centre. AMD dropped 10.6% following disappointing results, while Super Micro Computers plunged 33% after Ernst & Young resigned as its auditor.

In company news, Eli Lilly fell 6.3% after trimming its outlook due to slightly softer sales of its weight-loss drug, Zepbound. Meta dipped 3.2% post-market as higher ad revenue wasn't enough to excite investors given its AI-related capex spending forecast. Microsoft also gave up 3.7%, despite beating revenue estimates with growth from its cloud business and Office software.

At the end of the day, the JSE All-share was down 0.62%, the S&P 500 fell 0.33%, and the Nasdaq was 0.56% lower. Never mind, we will survive.

US markets nudged higher yesterday, with a rally in tech stocks lifting the Nasdaq Composite to new all-time highs. As 2024 draws to a close, we will be happy to hang on to these great gains, it's been a very good year.

In late trading, Google rose over 5.8% after its results topped estimates, but Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) dropped 7.6% on a weaker revenue outlook. Visa also reported solid fourth-quarter earnings, beating analyst expectations. Finally, Reddit stole the spotlight, jumping 25% as it posted third-quarter sales above forecasts and predicted a strong holiday season.

In summary, the JSE All-share was down 0.39%, but the S&P 500 rose 0.16%, and the Nasdaq was 0.78% higher. Good times.

US markets edged higher yesterday, at the start of the busiest week for corporate earnings. Energy stocks fell as Israel focused its strikes on Iranian military sites, easing concerns over disruptions to oil production in the Middle East.

In company news, Apple has begun releasing its first Apple Intelligence features and launched a new 24-inch iMac with an AI-centric M4 chip. Meanwhile, Meta is developing a search engine to power responses in its AI chatbot by sourcing information from across the web. Lastly, after hours, Ford shares dropped 6% following a cut in its profit outlook.

Here's how it went down. The JSE All-share was up 0.72%, the S&P 500 rose 0.27%, and the Nasdaq was 0.26% higher. Nice one.

US stocks lost steam on Friday as declines in bank shares weighed on the broader market. The S&P 500 ended the week down, the first time since early September. Tech stocks held strong, so the Nasdaq closed in the green. Tesla rose another 3.3% on the day, securing a solid 23% gain for the week.

In company news, Deckers Outdoor jumped 10.5% after reporting strong sales and lifting their annual outlook, thanks to firm demand for its Hoka and UGG brands. Meanwhile, Capri Holdings plummeted nearly 49% after a federal judge blocked the planned $8.5 billion acquisition by fashion brand conglomerate Tapestry, whose shares surged 13.5% on the news.

Here is the summary of Friday's moves. The JSE All-share was up a tiny 0.09%, the S&P 500 fell just 0.03%, and the Nasdaq was 0.56% higher.

US markets finally had a positive day for the first time this week, with the "Mag 7" reaching a three-month high. Tesla led the charge, surging 22%, its biggest rally since May 2013. More on that below.

In company news, UPS, often seen as an economic barometer, surged 5.3% after returning to sales and profit growth. Meanwhile, ServiceNow gained 5.4%, thanks to strong third-quarter sales and bookings as it expands its AI offerings. On the flip side, IBM's results disappointed, leading to a 6.2% drop in its stock.

Izolo, the JSE All-share was up 0.55%, the S&P 500 rose 0.21%, and the Nasdaq was 0.76% higher.

US markets went down again yesterday, marking three straight days of losses. After five months of steady gains, a pullback like this is something we can handle. The S&P 500 has been unusually calm recently, with no daily moves over 1% in either direction for the past 23 sessions - the longest stretch of stability since 2021.

In company news, Tesla shares jumped 12% after-hours after good third-quarter earnings. Their Cybertruck model finally turned a profit after being in production for almost a year. Elsewhere, Kering has cautioned that its annual profit could drop to its lowest level since 2016, as a sharp decline in Chinese demand for luxury goods continues to hurt its largest brand Gucci.

In summary, the JSE All-share was down 0.33%, the S&P 500 fell 0.92%, and the Nasdaq was 1.60% lower.

US markets closed mixed yesterday, with the Nasdaq up but the S&P 500 experiencing its first back-to-back decline in six weeks. For what it's worth, the current expectation is that the Federal Reserve will slow down its rate-cutting pace. Standout performers amongst the mega caps were Microsoft (+2.1%) and Meta (+1.2%).

In company news, McDonald's shares dropped 5.8% after hours due to an E. Coli outbreak tied to its Quarter Pounders in the western US. Verizon also fell 5% after reporting weaker-than-expected revenue, largely impacted by sluggish mobile phone sales. Finally, L'Oreal struggled with disappointing sales last quarter, with consumer demand in China continuing to decline.

Here's the lowdown, the JSE All-share was off 0.37%, and the S&P 500 slipped by just 0.05%, but the Nasdaq rose by 0.18%.

US markets had a mixed session yesterday, with the S&P 500 pausing after its longest weekly rally of the year. Nvidia surged 4.1% to hit a record high, lifting the Nasdaq. Interestingly, the S&P 500 hasn't seen back-to-back losses in nearly 30 sessions. While a month without consecutive down days might not seem significant, this current streak ranks among the best since 1928, according to SentimenTrader.

In company news, Kenvue jumped 5.5% after activist investor Starboard Value took a stake in the company, aiming to drive changes that could lift its stock price. Meanwhile, Microsoft is rolling out new AI tools aimed at helping business workers handle tasks like sending emails and managing records more efficiently.

At the close, the JSE All-share was down 0.14%, the S&P 500 fell 0.18%, and the Nasdaq was 0.27% higher. Our portfolios went up.