Weekly Market Recap | Apr 27 – May 03

Analyst Highlights

• Broad Market Strength: Equity markets finished positive despite geopolitical pressure, with large-cap, small-cap, and broad-market indexes all closing higher.
• Hawkish Bond Market: Treasury yields moved near the upper end of their recent range as inflation risks delayed expectations for Fed rate cuts.
• Sticky Inflation Pressure: Q1 GDP grew 0% annualized, while PCE inflation rose to 4.5% and core PCE reached 4.3%.
• Energy Risk Remained Elevated: Hormuz disruptions, U.S.-Iran tensions, and shipping risks kept oil markets volatile and reinforced energy-inflation concerns.
• Geopolitical Pressure Broadened: China defied U.S. sanctions, Ukraine targeted Russian oil assets, and NATO tensions increased over Europe’s Iran response.
• AI Infrastructure Race Continued: Google, OpenAI, Anthropic, and SoftBank advanced major AI initiatives, reinforcing AI as a central market and technology theme.

IPO’s in the week

• Hemab Therapeutics (COAG, Nasdaq) – a clinical-stage biotechnology company, priced its IPO on May 1, 2026, offering 15,000,000 shares at $18.00 per share. Shares traded sharply higher after pricing, rising 88.89%.
• Seaport Therapeutics (SPTX, Nasdaq) – a biopharmaceutical company, priced its IPO on May 1, 2026, offering 11,800,000 shares at $18.00 per share. Shares were positive after pricing, rising 10.22%.
• Avalyn Pharma (AVLN, Nasdaq) – a biotechnology company, priced its IPO on April 30, 2026, offering 16,666,667 shares at $18.00 per share. Shares were slightly positive after pricing, rising 1.19%.
• Pershing Square (PS, NYSE) – an investment management company, priced its IPO on April 29, 2026, offering 33,120,000 shares at $25.00 per share. Shares traded strongly after pricing, rising 35.68%.
• Pershing Square USA (PSUS, NYSE) – a closed-end investment vehicle affiliated with Pershing Square, priced its IPO on April 29, 2026, offering 43,700,000 shares at $50.00 per share. Shares were slightly positive after pricing, rising 0.21%.
• Silver Bow Mining (SBMT, NYSE American) – a mining company, priced its IPO on April 30, 2026, offering 4,347,828 shares at $11.50 per share. Shares were flat after pricing, showing 0.00% movement.

Additional IPO Activity: Several SPAC and unit offerings also priced during the week, mostly at $10.00 per unit, reflecting continued issuance activity but limited early trading movement.

Markets Weekly

1. S&P 500 closed at 7,230.12, up 56.21 points, or 0.78%, for the week.
2. Russell 1000 closed at 3,933.95, up 26.65 points, or 0.68%, for the week.
3. Russell 2000 closed at 2,812.82, up 24.63 points, or 0.88%, for the week.
4. Russell 3000 closed at 4,105.51, up 28.19 points, or 0.69%, for the week.
5. CBOE (VIX) closed at 16.99, down 1.03 points, or 5.72%, for the week.
6. Dow Jones closed at 49,499.27, up 331.48 points, or 0.67%, for the week.
7. Nasdaq Composite closed at 25,114.44, up 227.34 points, or 0.91%, for the week.
8. Bitcoin closed at $78,538.23, up $1,171.60, or 1.51%, for the week.
9. Ethereum closed at $2,321.64, up $18.58, or 0.81%, for the week.
10. Solana closed at $83.90, down $0.92, or 1.08%, for the week.
11. XRP closed at $1.3876, down $0.0133, or 0.95%, for the week.
12. Gold closed at $4,629.90, down $45.50, or 0.97%, for the week.
13. Silver closed at $75.951, up $0.948, or 1.26%, for the week.
14. WTI Crude closed at $101.94, up $5.57, or 5.78%, for the week.
15. Brent Crude closed at $108.17, down $0.06, or 0.06%, for the week.

• Deutsche Bank called the week “blockbuster,” with G7 central-bank meetings and 44% of S&P 500 market cap reporting earnings.
• The Fed held rates at 3.5–3.75% in a split 8-4 vote, while Powell signaled he may stay on the Board.
• Treasury yields moved near the upper end of their recent range as oil-driven inflation risks led bond markets to price out Fed rate cuts for 2026.
• Brent crude surged above $126 intraday before easing near $114, as Hormuz disruptions and Middle East tensions kept energy inflation risks elevated.
• Q1 GDP grew 2.0% annualized, while PCE inflation rose to 4.5% and core PCE hit 4.3%, keeping pressure on the Fed.
• JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon warned of bond-market and private-credit risks, citing deficits, geopolitics, oil prices, and a long-delayed credit cycle.
• Big Tech earnings kept AI spending in focus, with Alphabet raising 2026 capex guidance to $180–190 billion and Microsoft pointing to $40 billion-plus quarterly capex.

Politics Weekly

• Iran signaled willingness to reopen Hormuz under an interim deal, but U.S. officials remained skeptical of the proposal.
• Trump said the US will help stranded ships exit Hormuz, raising tensions as Iran warned US forces against entering the strait.
• NATO warned Europe that Trump is frustrated over Iran support, as the US plans troop withdrawals from Germany amid Hormuz tensions.
• China ordered companies to ignore U.S. sanctions on Iran-linked refiners, creating a direct test of Washington’s sanctions system and U.S.–China financial tensions.
• Taiwan’s leader was denied European transit after Beijing pressure, highlighting China’s diplomatic reach and Europe’s limits in supporting Taipei.
• Ukraine’s strikes on Russian oil assets hit a four-month high, cutting refinery runs and pressuring Moscow’s energy revenues.
• The EU rejected a US metals tariff proposal, warning it could worsen trade frictions and trigger further European countermeasures.
• The UK is set to join talks on the EU’s €90 billion Ukraine loan plan, strengthening defense ties with Brussels.

Technology Advancements in the week

• Google Cloud’s Gemini 3 drove 40% quarterly growth in paid enterprise users, with major adoption from Bosch, Mars, and Merck.
• OpenAI expanded enterprise partnerships, bringing models, Codex, and Managed Agents to AWS while deepening its Microsoft relationship.
• Anthropic reportedly discussed a $900 billion valuation, supported by Amazon financing and rapid revenue growth against OpenAI.
• SoftBank is preparing to spin out Roze, an AI robotics company targeting up to a $100 billion valuation.

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