LPL Research provides its Weekly Market Performance for the week of May 4, 2026. U.S. equities advanced despite ongoing geopolitical volatility, as investors increasingly focused on strong corporate earnings, resilient economic data, and optimism for easing tensions between the U.S. and Iran. Cooling oil prices and falling Treasury yields supported sentiment, while fresh tech earnings reinforced risk appetite. Globally, equity markets were mixed but generally higher, navigating trade uncertainties, political developments, and earnings reports, while fixed income markets benefited from lower yields. Commodities trading remained volatile with oil still in the spotlight despite gold finding its footing.

Stock Index Performance

S&P 500 Index Sectors

Fixed Income and Commodities

Source: LPL Research, Bloomberg 5/8/26 @3:15 p.m. ET
Disclosures: Indexes are unmanaged and cannot be invested in directly.

U.S. and International Equities

U.S. Equities: Stocks climbed through another week of headline volatility as market participants continued to refocus on strong fundamentals and a healthy macro backdrop. Geopolitical developments very much remained at the forefront of investors' minds as the U.S. and Iran exchanged fire in the Persian Gulf while Washington submitted a fresh 14-point peace proposal to Tehran. With both sides still appearing committed to reaching a diplomatic resolution, and the White House remarking that the ceasefire remained intact and that negotiations are progressing well, easing upward pressure on crude prices and Treasury yields acted as a tailwind for equities.

Meanwhile, after a strong “peak week” for earnings last week, another 128 S&P 500 companies offered quarterly results over the last five days. Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) was among higher-profile highlights, as the leading competitor to NVIDIA (NVDA) gave robust long-term growth forecasts driven by artificial intelligence (AI) demand. Super Micro Computer (SMCI) was also a standout with its own upbeat AI-fueled guidance. On the macro front, improving payrolls data from ADP supported sentiment, while a stronger-than-expected Bureau of Labor Statistics payrolls print Friday morning added to risk-on trading and extended weekly gains. 

International Equities: The regional STOXX 600 Index edged higher with individual markets trading mostly higher following the long weekend. Sensitivity to whipsaws in oil prices saw stocks flip between weekly gains and losses amid geopolitical uncertainty, amid a few other moving pieces. Tariff jitters returned to headlines late in the week after the European Union failed to secure a long-delayed U.S. trade deal, while the U.K. underperformed on political risk as local election results rolled in and some reports called for Prime Minister Starmer to plan his stepping down to avoid a disorderly exit. Earnings were also in focus, featuring strong sales results from Danish drugmaker Novo Nordisk and German automaker BMW, while London-based lender HSBC dropped on a profit miss driven by higher costs.

Trading across the Asia-Pacific region was relatively light amid the annual Golden Week holiday. South Korea surged over a four-day week as investors digested strong earnings reports from U.S. tech leaders, while the tech-heavy market of Taiwan also gained over a full five-day week. Greater China posted healthy gains following the holiday break, supported by improving services and stronger holiday travel data, hopes government incentives will help spark a recovery in home sales, and reports of DeepSeek fundraising. Japan ended higher after playing catch up in just a two-day trading week. 

Fixed Income, Currency, and Commodity Markets

Fixed Income: Core bonds, measured by the Bloomberg Aggregate Index, traded higher this week as cooling oil prices relieved upward pressure on Treasury yields. If headline noise and choppy oil prices didn’t keep bond investors busy enough over the last five days, the Treasury Department quarterly refunding announcement also arrived this week. 

The borrowing outlook offered by the Treasury was broadly steady but front‑loaded, with borrowing estimates for Q2 2026 and Q3 2026 that were in line with expectations, while also presenting higher projected end‑Q3 Treasury General Account (TGA) balances to accommodate larger outflows and increased Treasury rollover risks. Issuance guidance was unchanged as nominal coupons, Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities, and Floating Rate Notes were held flat for another quarter, with Treasury reiterating that current auction sizes are likely to remain in place for at least several more quarters. Plus, the combination of higher near‑term borrowing estimates and stable issuance guidance suggests a later start to coupon increases, now expected around May 2027, likely concentrated in 2-year to 7-year notes and driven by demand conditions.

Among other takeaways, the Treasury did announce changes to 20-year reopening settlement dates to ease repo specialness, and Treasury Borrowing Advisory Committee (TBAC) minutes highlighted ongoing study of investing excess TGA cash in repo markets — potentially reducing reserve volatility, though implementation appears distant. Bottom line, Treasury issuance remains well above pre‑2020 levels, while the buyer base has shifted away from price‑insensitive anchors (the Fed and foreign central banks) toward more price‑sensitive private investors, potentially needing higher clearing yields as supply grows. Treasury’s messaging reinforces a “steady but heavier” supply regime — issuance is large, growing more front‑loaded, and increasingly reliant on price‑sensitive private demand. Absent a renewed policy buyer or a meaningful deficit inflection, the bias is likely toward higher term premia and episodic volatility in the Treasury market.

Commodities and Currencies: The broader commodities complex reversed early-week strength to trade lower as elevated volatility continued. Oil markets remained focused on the ongoing closure of the Strait of Hormuz and brief clashes between U.S. and Iranian forces as American military ships helped guide tankers through the critical waterway. Despite the skirmishes, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures remain lower on the week on hopes of a firmer truce to end the conflict in the coming weeks, with Washington awaiting a response on its latest proposal. Meanwhile, gold found some traction with a weekly advance and four straight gains as optimism for a ceasefire helped alleviate worries around hotter inflation keeping interest rates elevated. Additional tailwinds for the yellow metal surrounded central bank buying and China’s central bank reporting its largest monthly purchase in over a year. Silver outperformed while copper also posted a solid advance. In currencies, the U.S. dollar weakened slightly, but the yen remained in the spotlight on signs of potential additional intervention overnight Wednesday.  

Economic Weekly Roundup

Bureau of Labor Statistics data released Friday morning indicated U.S. companies added more jobs than expected last month, despite some uncertainty around rising costs due to the war in Iran. Nonfarm payrolls rose by 115,000 in April, besting consensus forecasts for a second month, to mark the largest two-month increase since 2024. Healthcare has been the primary driver of job growth over the last year, and continued to lead hiring again, while the transportation and warehousing, retail trade, and couriers and messenger services sectors all delivered multi-year highs in hiring. Manufacturing employment fell slightly. The unemployment rate remained at 4.3%, with key takeaways highlighted by signs that the labor market is becoming more balanced across industries. 

The Week Ahead

The following economic data is slated for the week ahead:

• Monday: Existing Home Sales (Apr)
• Tuesday: NFIB Small Business Optimism (Apr), ADP Weekly Employment Change (Apr 25), Headline and Core CPI (Apr), Real Average Hourly and Weekly Earnings (Apr), Federal Budget Balance (Apr)
• Wednesday: MBA Mortgage Applications (May 8), Headline and Core PPI (Apr)
• Thursday: Import and Export Price Index (Apr), Initial Jobless Claims (May 9), Continuing Claims (May 2), Retail Sales (Apr), Business Inventories (Mar) 
• Friday: Empire Manufacturing (May), Industrial Production (Apr), Manufacturing (SIC) Production (Apr), Capacity Utilization (Apr)