Global conflict and economic news ruled the week, but renewed hopes for a “soft landing” helped stocks end the week in positive territory. 😥

Let's recap and prep you for the week ahead. 📝

What Happened?

🥳 On Monday, stocks broke their streak of sh*tty Septembers by closing positive on the month. With China roaring back, SoftBank looks ready to make more moonshot bets. Stellantis lacked traction, and investors debated how to position their portfolios through year-end.

😨 On Tuesday, the fourth quarter kicked off with more conflict. Investors analyzed a mix of macro headwinds, Exxon Mobil led energy higher, Nike reported dismal results, and several deals happened under the radar.

🔻 On Wednesday, stocks were mixed amid ‘mid’ fundamentals. Tesla sank after missing delivery estimates, Medicare’s updates hammered Humana, Levi’s considered unloading Docker’s, and a tax compliance software stock soared.

🫨 On Thursday, macro made for another messy trading session. Investors made the case for a bull run in energy, speculative plays trended for another day, and EVGo got a boost from the U.S. Department of Energy (DoE).

👨‍💼 On Friday, a strong employment report propelled stocks back into positive territory. Investors debated the economy and whether bonds have bottomed for the cycle. It was a rough day for several transportation stocks and an architectural services stock soared to new highs.

🤩 This week's Stocktwits Top 25 showed outperformance vs. the indexes.

Here are the closing prices: 

🤖 Foxconn beats estimates on AI demand. The world’s largest contract electronic maker beat third-quarter expectations and posted its highest-ever revenue for the period, citing strong demand for artificial intelligence (AI) servers. QoQ growth benefited from new product launches for smart consumer electronics (including iPhones), but YoY sales were flat. Despite the momentum, management says fourth-quarter results will likely be “roughly in line” with current market expectations. Reuters has more.

🛒 More retailers are rolling out holiday deals now to spur consumer demand. It's the holiday shopping season once again, and retailers are wasting no time in getting cautious consumers to pull out their wallets. With the presidential election next month and a late Thanksgiving in 2024, Amazon Prime Day, Target Circle Week, and Walmart Holiday Deals sale kick off this week, with other retailers like Best Buy and Kohl’s rolling out their own versions, too. More from Axios.

🔺 Vietnam’s quarterly growth rebounds amid export boost. The APAC country reported its strongest economic growth in two years after strong exports, industrial production, and foreign investment offset weather-related issues hitting the economy last month. GDP rose 7.4% YoY, topping the second-quarter’s revised 7.09% rise, a positive sign for multinational corporations that use Vietnam as a regional manufacturing hub. With geopolitical tensions remaining a risk to external demand, the country expects 6% to 6.5% growth this year, with inflation below 4.5%. Reuters has more.

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Need a concise summary of what's going on this week? Look no further. Here’s a rundown of this week’s earnings and economic data.

It’s a busy week of economic data, with seemingly every Fed member speaking their mind. However, investors will focus primarily on the FOMC Minutes and inflation data. In addition to the above, check out this week's complete list of economic releases.

A fresh earnings season kicks off Friday with the big banks. Overall, 27 stocks report this week. Some tickers you may recognize are $TLRY, $DPZ, $PEP, $DAL, $JPM, $BLK, and more.

Above is a quick summary. Check out the full Stocktwits earnings calendar for the other names reporting this week.

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🤔 Waymo’s new agreement with Hyundai raises questions about China

📰 From AOL Time Warner to DirecTV and Dish: 20 years of media mergers

🫁 ‘Amazing’ trial shows drug combination stops lung cancer advancing for longer

🌞 Solar power companies are growing fast in Africa, where 600 million still lack electricity

🏥 Hospitals take steps to conserve IV fluid supply after Helene strikes critical factory

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