Weekly Market Wrap – 1st May 2026

🌟 Big Tech & Middle East Tensions Drive a Record-Breaking Week

It was a week of stark contrasts as markets navigated a flurry of stellar Big Tech earnings against the backdrop of rising geopolitical tension in the Middle East. While the S&P 500 and Nasdaq soared to fresh record highs powered by blowout results from the likes of Apple and Alphabet, the UK market remained more cautious as oil prices climbed. Investors are currently weighing the “AI gold rush” against the potential economic drag of higher energy costs caused by ongoing shipping disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz.

📈 Weekly Scoreboard

*US rows are the latest reliable intraday figures available during the Friday session, not final official closes at source pull. (TradingView)

🌍 Global Drivers & Macro

• Earnings mattered more than fear. S&P 500 profit growth expectations jumped to 27.8%, the strongest since late 2021, helped by Apple, Alphabet, Meta, Amazon and Microsoft reporting.
• Oil cooled, and that helped sentiment. Brent crude eased back towards $108, which took some pressure off inflation fears though prices remain high enough to keep central banks cautious.
• Central banks are not rushing to cut. The Fed held rates at 3.50%–3.75%, while the Bank of England held at 3.75%; both are watching whether higher energy prices feed back into inflation.
• Growth is holding up, but costs are rising. Manufacturing surveys showed activity improving, yet delivery delays and input costs are flashing a warning light.

🇬🇧 UK Corner

• The FTSE 100 lagged global markets. London’s blue-chip index slipped to 10,363.93, while the FTSE 250 rose on the day but was slightly down for the week. Energy shares and AstraZeneca weakness weighed on the market.
• The Bank of England stayed put. Rates were held at 3.75%, with one policymaker voting for a rise. For savers and borrowers, the message is clear: don’t assume quick rate cuts are coming.
• UK factories improved — but inflation risk remains. The UK Manufacturing PMI rose to 53.7, where anything above 50 signals growth, but input costs rose sharply due to supply disruption.

🏦 Key Asset Movers

• GBP/USD held firm near 1.3512, with the pound showing resilience against the dollar. A softer US dollar — driven partly by investors questioning the pace of Fed rate cuts — has generally been supportive for sterling in recent weeks. A stronger pound is good news for UK holidaymakers and importers, but it slightly reduces returns on overseas investments held by UK investors.
• Oil easing, but still high. Brent fell back near $108, which helped calm inflation worries. But oil is still elevated, so central banks will remain alert.
• Gold has remained in demand as a safe-haven asset amid geopolitical tensions and inflation concerns, continuing to attract investor interest looking to hedge uncertainty.

📰 Key Headlines

• US GDP grows 2% in Q1 2026 (Reuters/BEA, 30 April) — The US economy avoided recession but inflation surged to 4.5% on the PCE measure, reducing the likelihood of near-term Fed rate cuts.
• Microsoft beats with $82.9bn revenue; Azure cloud up 40% (BBC Business, 30 April) — Strong cloud and AI demand drove Microsoft’s quarter, lifting investor confidence in the tech sector’s direction.
• Alphabet reports cloud revenue past $20bn, up 63% (BoardroomTV, 30 April) — Google’s parent beat revenue expectations convincingly, confirming that its AI investments are converting to growth.
• Meta revenue hits $56.3bn, up 33% — but user growth disappoints (BBC Business, 29 April) — Despite record profits, Meta shares dipped as new user additions came in below forecasts, a reminder that growth has limits.
• Apple posts record Q2 revenue of $111bn, up 17% (9to5Mac/iDropNews, 30 April) — The iPhone maker smashed expectations, crossing the $100bn quarterly revenue mark for the first time in a Q2 period, with iPhone sales up 21.7%.
• Brent crude falls toward $107/barrel (TradingEconomics, 1 May) — Oil pulled back on demand concerns, offering a potential relief valve for UK and global inflation pressures.
• Amazon Q1 cloud revenue up 28% (BoardroomTV, 30 April) — AWS continued its strong run, beating estimates and reinforcing the AI-driven cloud infrastructure boom.

📑 Companies Reporting

⚖️ Investor Sentiment Dashboard

Sentiment has staged a meaningful recovery from the deep pessimism seen in late March, when the CNN Fear & Greed Index hit a near-historic low of 8 and the AAII survey showed bearish sentiment above 51%. By mid-April, bears had eased back toward 42.8% and bulls recovered to 31.7% — still below the 37.5% long-run average, suggesting investors are cautiously optimistic but not yet fully committed. The VIX (a measure of expected market volatility — lower means calmer) fell around 5.7% over the week to near 19.5, consistent with a market that is settling down but not yet complacent.

📅 Next Week’s Radar

• Monday 4 May — all day: UK market holiday for the Early May Bank Holiday.
• Tuesday 5 May, 15:00 BST: US ISM Services and JOLTS jobs data. These will show whether the US economy is still running hot.
• Wednesday 6 May, 13:15 BST: US ADP employment report. This is an early steer before Friday’s bigger jobs number.
• Friday 8 May, 13:30 BST: US non-farm payrolls. This is the big one for markets because it influences Fed rate expectations.

⚡ The Final Take

This was ultimately a week that reminded investors why staying diversified and invested matters: Big Tech delivered great earnings, US growth proved resilient, and the worst of the sentiment panic from early 2026 continues to fade.

© Clearly Investments Ltd. Educational information only. This is not investment advice.