Tech Earnings, Trariffs and Other Key Things to Watch this Week
Here are 5 things to watch this week in the Market.
Heavy Tech Earnings Week
This week brings a significant slate of technology earnings, headlined by Tesla (TSLA) on Tuesday, followed by Alphabet (GOOGL) and Intel (INTC) on Thursday. Tesla's report will be closely watched for production numbers, margins, and commentary on demand trends amid increasing EV competition. Alphabet's advertising revenue growth and cloud performance will provide insights into digital ad spending and enterprise technology investments. Intel's results come at a critical juncture as the company attempts to regain competitive footing in the semiconductor industry. Given technology's outsized market influence, these reports could significantly impact broader market sentiment and influence sector rotation strategies, particularly as investors continue to assess AI investment trends and valuation sustainability.
Industrial Sector Health Check
A cluster of industrial bellwethers report this week, including 3M (MMM) on Tuesday, Boeing (BA) on Wednesday, and several materials companies including Freeport-McMoRan (FCX) on Thursday and Schlumberger (SLB) on Friday. These reports will provide critical insights into manufacturing activity, industrial demand, and supply chain conditions amid ongoing trade tensions. Boeing's results will be particularly scrutinized for updates on production issues and aircraft deliveries, while materials companies will offer perspective on global commodity demand and pricing trends. Together, these reports will help traders assess whether the industrial sector is maintaining momentum or facing headwinds from tariff impacts and shifting global trade patterns.
Services vs. Manufacturing Dynamics
Wednesday's flash Manufacturing and Services PMI readings at 9:45am will offer timely insights into business activity across major economic sectors. These preliminary April indicators will help determine whether manufacturing continues to show signs of stabilization while services maintain their growth trajectory. The divergence between these sectors has been a notable economic trend, with services continuing to outperform manufacturing for several quarters. Any convergence in performance could signal changing economic dynamics. The reports' details on new orders, employment, and prices will provide valuable forward-looking indicators about business confidence and inflation pressures. Given recent concerns about uneven economic performance, these diffusion indices could significantly impact market sentiment and sector positioning.
Housing Market Resilience
Thursday's Existing Home Sales report at 10am will help assess whether the housing market is maintaining momentum despite persistently high mortgage rates and affordability challenges. As one of the most interest-rate sensitive sectors of the economy, housing activity provides important signals about monetary policy transmission effects. The report's details on inventory levels, median prices, and days on market will offer insights into supply-demand dynamics and potential future construction activity. Housing-related stocks including homebuilders, home improvement retailers, and mortgage lenders could see notable reactions based on these results. With housing's important role in consumer wealth effects and broader economic momentum, this report takes on additional significance for gauging economic health.
Tariff Developments and Global Trade
Markets remain highly sensitive to evolving trade policy developments, with particular focus on implementation details, potential carve-outs, and international responses to recent tariff announcements. Comments from administration officials, trading partners, and corporate executives about supply chain adjustments and pricing implications will be closely monitored. Industries with significant international exposure including technology, industrials, and consumer products may see pronounced reactions to evolving trade policy details. With durable goods orders data releasing Thursday at 8:30am, traders will have an opportunity to assess whether tariff concerns are beginning to impact business investment decisions. The combination of trade headlines and economic data could create significant market volatility as investors continue to evaluate the longer-term implications of shifting trade policies.
Best of luck this week and don't forget to check out my daily options article.
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Globe and Mail
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2 Monster Growth Stocks to Sell Before They Fall 56% and 64% in 2025, According to Wall Street Analysts
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That implies 56% downside from its current share price of $182. Ryan Brinkman at JPMorgan has set Tesla with a year-end target price of $115 per share. That implies 64% downside from its current share price of $321. Importantly, most Wall Street analysts are less bearish, but very few expect material upside in the stocks. The average target on Circle is $181.50 per share, which implies no change from its current price. And the average target on Tesla is $310 per share, which implies 3% downside from its current price. Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our analyst team just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks to buy right now. Continue » Here's what investors should know. Circle Internet Group: 56% implied downside Circle is on a mission to improve the global financial system by enabling a frictionless exchange of value with stablecoins, cryptocurrencies tied to the value of fiat currencies. 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Globe and Mail
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Meet the Unstoppable Stock That Could Join Nvidia, Microsoft, and Apple in the $3 Trillion Club
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By pairing the 1 GW site with a $2 billion commitment to solar and wind, Google is at the vanguard of ESG-driven infrastructure—offering customers, regulators, and partners a clear sustainability narrative that aligns with growing global and Indian environmental mandates. The strategic choice of Andhra Pradesh gives Google first-mover advantage in a state with strong government incentives, massive grid expansion plans, and a push to become an Asia-Pacific digital super-node. Early anchor status could yield favorable tax, permitting, and network interconnection benefits versus later competitors. Google's commitment to execution (ultra‑high capacity, local renewable PPAs, modern cable-landing stations) sets a best-in-class benchmark, likely attracting subsequent hyperscale deals and nurturing a robust cloud and AI ecosystem in southern India. The facility's scale supports ultra‑low latency for next‑gen services—foundational for both local unicorns and multinational clients—while resilience from renewable-plus-coal backstops ensures mission‑critical reliability amid India's complex power grid dynamics. Alphabet's ability to sustain programmatic growth globally (with $75 billion in data-centre capex committed this year) demonstrates financial power and operational confidence, signaling to investors and customers that it can meet surging AI and cloud requirements at global scale. Bear Case: The scale and ambition of the $6 billion Visakhapatnam investment increase execution risks—permitting, construction, and grid interconnection delays could strain returns, especially if local regulatory processes stall or infrastructure upgrades lag hyperscaler demand. India's immature power market may undermine Google's renewable energy strategy: while $2 billion is earmarked for green power, grid instability or overreliance on coal backstops could threaten ESG goals, introduce reputational risk, or inflate operational costs during spiking energy markets. Competition is set to escalate: AWS and Microsoft are also accelerating data centre buildouts in India—if client ramp is slower than expected, Alphabet could face pricing pressure and underutilization, challenging its ROI and first-mover edge in a nascent regional market. Global geopolitical risks remain nontrivial: Alphabet's $75 billion data-centre rollout faces possible headwinds from shifting trade policy, supply chain bottlenecks, or local content regulation, each of which could hike project costs or limit Google's flexibility over the facility's lifecycle. Reliance on Andhra Pradesh's fiscal and regulatory incentives could backfire if political winds shift or competing states introduce counter-offers—future cost structures may prove less attractive as the 'data centre gold rush' intensifies across India. Heavy capital outlay tied up in a single site increases financial and operational risk; failure to hit timelines or win major offtake deals may leave Google with excess capacity as the pace of AI and cloud demand, while robust, remains inherently difficult to forecast. Andhra Pradesh, carved out from Telangana in 2014, targets 6 GW of total data‑centre capacity within five years, up from virtually zero today. Officials expect the initial 1.6 GW of lined‑up projects to go live over the next two years, supported by plans for three new cable‑landing stations to double regional connectivity. While green energy will supply the bulk of demand, reliable coal‑fired backstops will ensure uninterrupted power. Google's Visakhapatnam bet underscores India's ascent as a global cloud and AI hub and highlights Andhra Pradesh's push to alleviate fiscal strains through infrastructure investment. Investors and hyperscalers will watch permit timelines, grid reliability and off‑take agreements as gauges of the state's data‑centre climate and as a template for future pan‑India deployments.
