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The Fed cut interest rates by 0.50% at its Federal Open Market Committee meeting last week. The market expected a cut but was unsure by how much. The debate between a 0.25% and a 0.50% cut dominated headlines over the past week, but it was mostly noise and likely won’t have a significant long-term impact. Now that the first cut is complete, the focus shifts to how much and how quickly the Fed will continue to cut rates.

After reaching all-time highs in mid-July, stocks have been under pressure for the last two weeks. For the month of July, the S&P 500 advanced 1.1%, its third consecutive monthly gain. The index briefly surpassed 5,600 for the first time before it traded lower in late July and gave back some of the gains. The tech-heavy Nasdaq 100, which led markets higher in the first half of this year, started to decline in July as Nvidia, Microsoft, Google-parent Alphabet, and Facebook-parent Meta traded down after their strong starts to the year. In the bond market, Treasury yields fell. As of the last Friday’s close, the NASDAQ is now in a correction as the decline for this tech-heavy index from its recent all-time high has exceeded 10%.

After reaching all-time highs in mid-July, stocks have been under pressure for the last two weeks. For the month of July, the S&P 500 advanced 1.1%, its third consecutive monthly gain. The index briefly surpassed 5,600 for the first time before it traded lower in late July and gave back some of the gains. The tech-heavy Nasdaq 100, which led markets higher in the first half of this year, started to decline in July as Nvidia, Microsoft, Google-parent Alphabet, and Facebook-parent Meta traded down after their strong starts to the year. In the bond market, Treasury yields fell. As of the last Friday’s close, the NASDAQ is now in a correction as the decline for this tech-heavy index from its recent all-time high has exceeded 10%.

The market continued a recent rotation trade last week, with the Russell 2000 gaining more than 2% while the “Magnificent 7” weighed down the Nasdaq and the S&P 500. The VIX Index remains well off its summer lows as the rotation leads to increased volatility. In the bond market, Treasury yields moved slightly higher, causing bonds to trade lower.