The week in review
Technology carried the week, gaining 7.25% and pulling the Nasdaq 100 up 5.09% — roughly double the pace of the Dow. Eight of eleven sectors closed higher, so the advance had real breadth, but the gap between Technology at the top and Energy at -3.44% shows leadership was far from uniform. The VIX settled at 15.15, its lowest print of the period, as volatility continued to drain out of the tape.
Broad uptrend with healthy participation: most stocks above trend.
Where the money went
Weekly total return of the 11 SPDR sector ETFs, measured Friday close to Friday close.
| Technology | +7.25% | |
| Materials | +4.86% | |
| Consumer Discretionary | +3.26% | |
| Industrials | +3.01% | |
| Communication Svcs | +2.81% | |
| Health Care | +1.92% | |
| Financials | +1.19% | |
| Consumer Staples | +0.09% | |
| Real Estate | -0.13% | |
| Utilities | -1.66% | |
| Energy | -3.44% |
The data behind the tape
Every release links straight to the issuing agency. No aggregator in between.
| Date | Release | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 08-04-2026 | JOLTS The openings data gave the market an early read on labour-market slack; the level of job openings relative to recent prints set the tone for how Friday's payrolls number would be framed. | Official release › |
| 08-07-2026 | Jobs report Friday's Employment Situation report landed as the week's decisive macro event, with the headline payroll and unemployment figures shaping the rate-path narrative that has been driving bond and equity moves all summer. | Official release › |
The prints that mattered
Ranked by surprise versus consensus. Figures from the reported quarter.
| Company | Actual | Source |
|---|---|---|
Uber's quarter was defined by expanding margins and autonomous-vehicle partnership momentum, with analysts pointing to its AV ecosystem as the structural story beneath the headline beat. | 1.17 | Full report › · Our thesis › |
Lilly's result was driven by continued GLP-1 demand, and the quarter arrived alongside news of a $3.8B acquisition of AtaiBeckley, adding a pipeline dimension to what was already a strong operating print. | 8.38 | Full report › · Our thesis › |
Caterpillar's outperformance was built on sustained infrastructure and energy-equipment demand; the scale of the beat — the widest in this week's cohort on a percentage basis — suggested pricing held up better than the buy-side had assumed. | 8.17 | Full report › · Our thesis › |
Pfizer beat on the strength of its core pharmaceutical business and raised its 2026 revenue guidance to as much as $62.5B, with its monthly GLP-1 candidate drawing attention as a potential competitive entry into the weight-loss market. | 0.77 | Full report › · Our thesis › |
Parks revenue compensated for box-office softness, and management used the earnings call to sketch an evolution of Disney+ into a broader digital platform — the strategic framing drew as much attention as the quarterly numbers themselves. | 2.06 | Full report › · Our thesis › |
Aug 10 – Aug 14
What is scheduled. Not a forecast of how it lands.
What this means
The week ahead brings three high-impact macro releases in three days: CPI on Wednesday the 12th, PPI on Thursday the 13th, and Retail Sales on Friday the 14th. That kind of back-to-back inflation and consumption data historically widens intraday ranges and can shift positioning quickly between prints, particularly when, as now, the rate-path debate is unresolved. CSCO reports after the close on Wednesday, landing in the middle of the inflation data sequence. Retail investors managing their own portfolios may want to be aware that price action mid-week could look quite different from how the week opens and closes.
Not personalized advice, and not a recommendation to buy or sell any security. Figures are sourced from public market data and the agencies linked above.
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