Latest Irish Life weekly markets update

Key talking points include:

• Equity markets had a mixed week with major US indices hitting record highs amid ongoing strength in AI-linked stocks and upbeat earnings results, whilst European markets fell on growth and inflation fears.
• Approaching the mid-point of earnings season, a handful of US mega-cap technology stocks are expected to continue generating a disproportionate share of overall earnings growth. Analysts expect the Magnificent Seven to post average first-quarter growth of 22.8%, according to FactSet. In contrast, the other 493 companies in the S&P 500 are projected to produce growth of 10.1%.
• The S&P 500 rose by 0.6% (MTD 8.9%, YTD 4.7%) while the Euro Stoxx 600 fell by 2.5% (MTD 2.2%, YTD 3.1%).
• It's a big week ahead for markets as Alphabet, Apple, Amazon, Microsoft and Meta report earnings and the US Federal Reserve, ECB, Bank of England, Bank of Japan and Bank of Canada all meet to decide on interest rates. Economic data is light but Eurozone GDP and inflation data will be watched.