As of the time of writing, the three major indexes are slightly down, with the Dow Jones Index falling by 0.16%, the Nasdaq Index falling by 0.25%, and the S&P 500 Index falling by 0.15%.

Wednesday (June 19th) is the June holiday in the United States (Juneteenth National Independence Day, also known as June Independence Day), and the US stock market will be closed on this day. US President Biden officially approved this new federal holiday in 2021 to commemorate the emancipation of enslaved African Americans in the United States.

Last week, the three major US stock indexes rose and fell, and the Dow recorded its third consecutive week of decline in four weeks. Driven by AI and large-cap technology stocks, the S&P and Nasdaq both hit new historic highs and recorded their seventh week of gains in the past eight weeks.

Investors this week will evaluate whether the record-breaking upward trend of US stocks can continue.

Goldman Sachs analysts said that the S&P 500 Index has returned to the 'overbought' area. From the perspective of liquidity, investors continue to have a strong demand for large-cap technology stocks such as the 'Seven Giants'. Net buying last week amounted to as much as $8.5 billion. At the same time, the weakness of the small-cap stock index Russell 2000 continues to cause concerns about slow economic growth among investors.

Goldman Sachs has raised its year-end target for the S&P 500 Index from 5200 points to 5600 points. They stated: 'We maintain our earnings expectations for 2024 and 2025, but the strong earnings growth of the five major technology stocks offsets the typical pattern of negative revisions to overall earnings per share expectations.'

Goldman Sachs pointed out that although the US stock market has been reaching new highs, the expectation for US economic growth is too optimistic, and the most easily overlooked is the financial deterioration and consumption decline of mid-to-low-end consumers. Although inflation is easing, price levels are still challenging for consumers.

Evercore ISI has raised its year-end forecast for the S&P 500 Index to 6000 points. The institution stated that the index will show a double-digit increase by the end of 2024.

Analysts at the bank pointed out that the optimistic sentiment driven by the economic recovery, the improvement of corporate profits, and the end of the Fed’s tightening cycle has pushed the S&P 500 Index up 14% this year. Inflation receding and the AI ​​boom will continue to drive US stocks higher.

"There are only two themes in the market this year that investors really want to participate in, one is the long-term theme of artificial intelligence, and the other is ​​manufacturing, reshoring, and frankly, sustained strong economic growth," said Shannon Saccocia of NB Private.

Investors will evaluate May's retail sales data to be released on Tuesday this week, as well as home sales and new home construction data to be released later this week. Lennar, Kroger, Darden Restaurants, and CarMax will release their earnings reports this week.

At least 10 Federal Reserve policy makers will give speeches this week, including Dallas Fed President Logan, Chicago Fed President Gulsby, and Federal Reserve Governor Quarles. The market will pay attention to the officials' views on interest rates for this year.

Although the Federal Reserve sent a hawkish signal last week, three sets of moderate inflation data led futures market to predict a 76% chance of cutting interest rates in September and a 50% chance of cutting interest rates by 50 basis points this year.

Investors are also watching the political situation in France and its impact on the financial market.

The sell-off of European stocks and bonds was suspended on Monday, as France's extreme right-wing leader Le Pen stated that if she wins in the upcoming sudden parliamentary elections, she will respect political institutions.

Le Pen stated that if she wins the French parliamentary elections, she will not attempt to overthrow President Macron. This is clearly a gesture towards moderates and investors. Her party, the National Union, is expected to become the largest party in the lower house.

Focus stocks

Most of the star tech stocks rose, with Broadcom up more than 4%, Micron Technology up more than 3%, and Nvidia up more than 1%.

The rise and fall of popular China concept stocks are mixed, with Taiwan Semiconductor and Bilibili up nearly 3% and NIO down nearly 2%.

Digital currency concept stocks fell, with MicroStrategy down more than 4%, Marathon Digital down nearly 4%, and Coinbase down more than 3%.

$Broadcom (AVGO.US)$Marathon Digital rose more than 4% after its financial report and was rated up by several major banks. The company also announced a 1-for-10 stock split plan.

$Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM.US)$The company announced a price increase for advanced processes and advanced packaging, with a rise of more than 2%.

$Dell Technologies (DELL.US)$With a rise of more than 4%, Morgan Stanley analyst Erik Woodring maintains a buy rating for Dell, with a target price of $155 and listed as a preferred choice.

Edited by Jeffrey