Anna's Markets Recap

_{Just facts, you think for yourself}

Saturday, 5:21 AM

March 15, 2025

Good morning news friend! Here is a quick recap of what happened in the markets this week. 📰🌟

Technology & Growth

A steep sell-off early in the week saw the tech-heavy Nasdaq plunge 3.5%, marking a fourth straight weekly loss​.

On Monday alone, the S&P 500’s technology sector dropped over 4%, with Apple and Nvidia both sliding about 5%, and Tesla plummeting 15% (erasing $125 billion in value)​.

By Friday, a relief rally had lifted the sector off the lows – Nvidia surged 5.3% ahead of its GPU conference, Tesla jumped nearly 4% on plans for a cheaper Model Y, and Meta gained 3%​.

Apple’s stock flirted with bear-market territory, down ~18% from its peak as tariffs raised its costs and iPhone 16 sales disappointed​. For Alphabet and Meta, ad revenues grew in the high single digits, slower than before​.

Microsoft and Google faced questions about slowing cloud growth and massive AI investments eating into margins​. Broadcom reported a 25% jump in quarterly sales on booming AI chip demand​.

Apple’s CEO noted U.S. spending is “tepid,” limiting pricing power​.

Investor sentiment soured early on trade-war escalation – tariffs on China, Canada, and Mexico “dominated headlines” and sparked fears of higher costs​. Hedge funds slashed equity exposure at the fastest pace in two years​.

By mid-week, inflation data offered a silver lining (cooling CPI figures gave hope that the Fed might stay on hold), helping fuel Wednesday’s brief tech rally​.

Still, uncertainty persisted; valuations remained elevated (~21× forward earnings vs ~16× long-run average).​

Financial Institutions

Financial stocks had a soft week, weighed down by falling bond yields and recession jitters. The S&P 500 financial sector slid roughly 3%​, underperforming the broad market.

Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase shares each fell about 4–5% over the week amid concerns about narrower interest margins and slower loan growth.

Visa (V) and Mastercard (MA) were relatively resilient, ending down around 1–2% as robust consumer spending on services partly offset macro worries. Still, even these fintech names felt some strain from lower transaction volumes growth compared to last year.

Early in the week, a flight-to-safety in bonds drove the 10-year Treasury yield to a multi-month low ~4.11%​, flattening the yield curve.

This hit rate-sensitive banks like Bank of America (BAC) hardest (BAC shares dropped ~6% as net interest income outlook dimmed).

Consumer spending and credit quality remained solid; credit card default rates are still near historical lows, and banks like JPMorgan noted healthy household balance sheets in recent conferences.

Money-market funds saw large inflows as investors sought safety​ away from equities like bank stocks. Options positioning suggested some hedging against further declines in bank indexes.

Yet there’s value hunting emerging: at roughly 10× earnings, bank valuations look attractive if the economy avoids a hard landing.

Consumer Staples & Healthcare

Healthcare stocks proved their defensive mettle – the sector managed to inch up about +0.4% for the week, emerging as the only S&P sector in the green.

Eli Lilly (LLY) led the pack, itsstock hit a fresh high after executives projected 32% revenue growth for 2025, fueled by demand for its diabetes and obesity drugs​.

AbbVie (ABBV) also gained modestly (~+1%), as investors cheered its upbeat 2025 profit outlook – new immunology drugs Skyrizi and Rinvoq are expected to drive revenue beyond Humira’s peak within two years​.

The Staples sector slipped about 1–2% as investors rotated toward cash​. Big retailers like Walmart (WMT) and Costco (COST) saw their shares dip ~2% over the week.

Costco missed earnings estimates due to higher merchandise costs​, and warned that tariffs could force it to tweak supply chains to keep prices low for shoppers​.

Energy & Industrial

Exxon Mobil (XOM) shares drifted about 2% lower, tracking a slight dip in oil prices. U.S. crude oil (WTI) fluctuated and ultimately settled around $67 per barrel​ – about 1% lower on the week despite a Friday uptick.

The company’s recent earnings revealed record oil production but weaker refining profits, and that theme persisted: global fuel margins remained under pressure as demand growth lagged expectations​.

By mid-week OPEC cut its demand forecast, citing the tariff uncertainty. This kept Brent and WTI oil benchmarks on the back foot.

Meanwhile, Home Depot (HD), a proxy for the housing and home improvement market, fell roughly 3% over the week.

Home Depot reported better-than-expected Q4 results and hiked its dividend​, but a “soft” 2025 outlook (projecting only +2.8% sales growth and a slight earnings decline​) curbed enthusiasm.

Mortgage rates remain high (the 30-year fixed is ~6.7%), which has cooled home sales – a negative for Home Depot’s demand.

Home Depot noted that DIY project volume has softened from the pandemic highs​. Short interest in Home Depot and Lowe’s has fallen, indicating fewer investors betting against them now.

Housing data out this week was mixed: new home starts ticked up slightly in February, but permits (a forward-looking indicator) fell, underscoring a sluggish outlook.

Still, consumer spending on big-ticket items like appliances and renovations showed some resilience, thanks to a strong job market.

Did you know we also write in-depth deep dives? They are long, packed with insights, and have received rave reviews. If you’re up for a detailed, action-packed read, check them out:

• Cryptocurrencies

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• AI and the Age of Intelligence

• Iran’s Nuclear Program 

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Baked with love,

Anna Eisenberg ❤️