U.S. stocks are muted ahead of a heavy week of earnings reports. At 9:53 ET (13:53 GMT), the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 18 points or less than 0.1%, while the S&P 500 was up 0.1% and the NASDAQ Composite was up 0.3%. This week features a number of earnings reports from large companies, including Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS), Tesla, Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA), and Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX).
They follow reports last week from big banks, including JPMorgan Chase (NYSE:JPM).
Stocks rose last week on positive inflation news
Of the 30 S&P 500 companies to report so far, about 80% have beaten expectations, according to Refinitiv. Stocks rose last week after consumer price index and producer price reports for June that had prices cooling faster than expected, stoking hopes that the Federal Reserve could get to the end of its interest rate increases sooner rather than later.
Other data expected this week include retail sales and a slew of housing market data, including existing home sales.
Microsoft court decision could lead to more M&A
The big banks to report so far saw a revenue boost from higher interest rates and said the economy remains resilient. A judge’s decision last week to clear Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) to complete its deal to buy Activision Blizzard (NASDAQ:ATVI) is fueling hopes that more deals could be coming. That could be good news for banks like Goldman that depend on revenue from merger advisory and capital markets activity.
Activision Blizzard shares rose 2.9% after Microsoft agreed to keep the game Call of Duty on Sony PlayStation once their transaction is complete.
Tesla rolls out Cybertruck
Tesla shares were rising 2.7% after the electric vehicle maker rolled out its Cybertruck, four years after first unveiling the prototype. BridgeBio Pharma, Inc. (NASDAQ:BBIO) shares soared 61% after it said an experimental heart disease drug significantly improved reducing hospitalizations.
Oil was falling. Crude Oil WTI Futures was down 0.8% to $74.66 a barrel, while Brent Oil Futures crude was down 0.9% to $79.12 a barrel. Gold Futures fell 0.6% to $1,952.
