Week ahead: Magnificent 7 earnings, 2 key inflation reports

Earnings season hits full stride with half of the Magnificent 7 stocks reporting updates. Microsoft, Alphabet, and Tesla all report earnings on Tuesday. A slew of Dow Jones components, such as Visa, Verizon, Coca-Cola, as well as 3M, are also in action. On the macro front, the Bank of Canada meets, and we get fresh inflation reports from the US and Japan in the week before the July policy meetings of the FOMC and Bank of Japan.

Here are the week’s key events:

Monday, July 22nd: Verizon Earnings Report

The week starts in a fairly slow manner with Chinese 1-year and 5-year loan prime rates close to the only notable event on the calendar. Markets will be turning attention to some key inflation data and earnings later in the week. Dow Jones component Verizon is the only large cap to report earnings ahead of the open on Wall Street.

Earnings: Verizon (VZ)

Tuesday, July 23rd: Tesla Earnings Report

Tesla shares rallied sharply in the second quarter to move higher YTD – can earnings propel the stock to fresh highs? Delivery data has not been great – a 4.7% decline in Q2 deliveries was the second consecutive decline in quarterly sales. Meanwhile its share of US electric vehicle sales has fallen below 50% for the first time. EPS expected around $.06 on $24.6bn in revenue. Wells Fargo is sceptical the rally can continue, noting that it’s been “driven by ‘razzle-dazzle’ headlines as most fundamentals remain weak.” UBS also downgraded the stock to sell from neutral recently, nothing that big AI investments could be a headwind near-term: “If market enthusiasm for AI diminishes, this may impact TSLA’s multiple.”

Meanwhile, look out for the Eurozone consumer confidence survey, US existing home sales, and the Richmond Fed manufacturing index.

Earnings: Coca-Cola (KO), General Motors (GM), Spotify (SPOT), Alphabet (GOOG), Microsoft (MSFT), Teladoc Health (TDOC), Tesla (TSLA), Visa (V)

Wednesday, July 24th: Bank of Canada Policy Meeting

The Bank of Canada could follow up its rate cut in June with another this week after inflation came in cooler than expected in June. CPI fell to 2.7%, having surprised to the upside in May at 2.9%. The relief in pricing pressures could see the BoC cut again, though the shelter components remain higher than the BoC would like. Governor Tiff Macklem has said it’s “reasonable” to expect further interest rate cuts as long as inflation continues to decline in line with the central bank’s forecasts.

Elsewhere, we will be watching the monthly round of flash services and manufacturing PMI surveys covering the Eurozone, UK and US.

Earnings: AT&T (T), CME Group (CME), Ford (F), ServiceNow (NOW)

Thursday, July 25th: US Q2 GDP First Reading

The advanced reading for US GDP in the second quarter is today’s highlight as markets consider how much Fed rate hikes are eating into output growth. The GDPNow model from the Atlanta Fed estimates GDP growth in the second quarter of 2024 of 2.5 percent, up from 2.0 percent on July 10th. Also, look to the US durable goods orders and weekly unemployment claims figures. Markets in Europe will keep an eye on the latest German Ifo business climate survey.

Earnings: AbbVie (ABBV)

Friday, July 26th: Japan, US Inflation Data

Two key inflation reports ahead of two key central bank decisions. Tokyo core CPI data will be watched closely for its impact on JPY crosses ahead of a Bank of Japan decision the following week, which could see the central bank raise rates again. BoJ board members discussed the case for a hike as upside risks to inflation become “more noticeable,” according to a summary of opinions from the June policy meeting.

Meanwhile the core PCE inflation report from the US – the Fed’s preferred gauge of price growth – is the last major data point for policymakers ahead of the FOMC decision on Wednesday July 31st. Markets are currently geared for the Fed to pause and then cut in September.

Earnings: 3M (MMM), Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMY)

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