US equity markets continued their march into record territory last week, supported by a strong earnings season and renewed momentum among companies most exposed to artificial intelligence (AI). The S&P 500 rose by a further +2.1% (in dollar terms), with the technology sector once again leading the advance as firms across the AI value chain extended recent gains. Earnings releases have been impressive overall, with around 85.0% of S&P500 reporting companies beating market expectations¹. While corporates are typically adept at tempering guidance ahead of results, the scale of the upside has still been notable. In aggregate, net earnings for S&P 500 constituents are expected to have grown by around +28.0% year‑on‑year in the first quarter, underlining the strength of profit momentum². Performance was not uniform across the market, however, with energy and utilities lagging, with the former coming under pressure as oil prices retreated across the week.

Japanese equities were also notably buoyant in what was a holiday‑shortened trading week. The Nikkei 225 surged +5.4% in yen terms, pushing further into record territory, with gains once again led by strong momentum in technology and semiconductor stocks benefiting from AI‑related demand. It was also a shorter week for trading in China due to the Labor Day holidays. Local markets advanced +1.7% (in renminbi), supported by a solid performance from the technology sector, which continued to attract inflows amid signs of stabilising growth conditions. Moving to Europe, moves on the Continent were more modest with the MSCI Europe ex UK index ending the week +0.5% higher (in euros). Tariff threats from the White House may have weighed on momentum with President Trump flagging intentions to ramp up levies if the European Union (EU) does not drop its own taxes on US imports to zero. As for the UK, the FTSE100 retreated by -1.3% in part due to weakness amongst its oil giants.

As already flagged, oil prices retreated last week on renewed optimism that progress could be made toward resolving the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. Brent crude fell -6.4% to $101 a barrel, giving back a portion of recent gains as traders responded to shifting signals from both US and Iranian officials and the prospect of reduced supply‑disruption risk. As for gold, the precious metal enjoyed a positive week with a +1.6% rise to $4,708 an ounce as it benefitted from some weakness in the dollar towards the end of the week.

¹ T. Rowe Price – Global Markets Weekly Update, 08/05/2026
² J. H Investments – Weekly Market Recap, 08/05/2026

SJP Approved: 11/05/2026

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