The confidence of the American stock investors is shaking after a bloody week in Wall Street

US financial markets have declined to their lowest levels in about 6 months, amid the escalation of fears of slowdown in global economic growth, in addition to the possible impacts of customs tariffs on the markets. This led to a sharp vibration of investor confidence, especially after the heavy losses that it appeared last week, according to Yahoo Finance.

Last week .. sharp losses in Wall Street

Wall Street witnessed a bloody week, as the Standard & Poor’s index fell 500 by 2.3%, and the Dow Jones index fell by 3%, losing more than 1,300 points.
The Nasdaq Complex Index – which is dominated by the technology sector – recorded a decline of 2.4%
Last Thursday, the Standard & Poor’s 500 index officially entered the correction phase, after he lost 10% of its value compared to the highest record recorded on February 19.
Also read: The increasing losses of American stocks … a collective decrease on the Wall Street Stock Exchange

What is the stock investors this week?

The Federal Reserve and the American Economy Path remains the focus of market attention this week.
It is expected that the US Central Bank will keep the interest rates fixed when it announces its decision on monetary policy on Wednesday, while attention will focus on any future indicators on the date of reducing monetary policy or the chances of reducing interest again.

US retail sales report for February

The retail sales report for February is scheduled to be issued on Monday, as it is expected to highlight the economic trends of American consumers.
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At the level of companies, the markets will follow the results of the quarterly profits of “Nike” companies, “FedEx” and “Micron” after the closing of the trading session on Thursday.

Markets record the worst performance since 2023

The US stock futures fell in Wall Street on Sunday, after the Dow Jones index registered its worst week since 2023, according to CNBC.
At the beginning of the new week, the Dow Jones index fell by 168 points, or 0.4%, and the futures for the Standard & Poor’s 500 index fell by 0.5%, and the NASDAC index recorded 100 decreases by 0.5%.

Trump’s policies increase uncertainty

These sharp declines come at a time when investors suffer from increased ambiguity on US President Donald Trump’s commercial policies, especially with regard to customs duties file.
Besides, negative economic indicators have increased, which led to an increase in fluctuation in financial markets and pushing investors to ask whether the current correction may turn into a descending market.

Market direction analysis: Does the correction turn into a long drop?

Adam Parker, CEO of “Trevaret Research”, commented on the situation, saying:
“Based on the current indicators, the economic slowdown has become more clear. Fears are not only related to growth, but there is an actual decline in many sectors, which increases the negative directions of the markets next April.”
Parker added: “Until then, investors must adopt a more defensive approach than offensive, because I do not think that the basic factors will recover at the speed that we have seen in previous sessions.”

Is the federal heading to reduce interest?

Analysts will closely monitor the statements of Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell after the meeting, in search of any signals to change the position of the central bank.
Powell had indicated earlier this year that the federal reserve was not in a hurry to reduce interest rates, which increased uncertainty in the market.
Besides, investors will focus on new economic data, especially the US retail sales report, which is expected to reveal new indicators on consumer spending.

February retail sales expectations

According to a survey conducted by Dow Jones, economists expect that retail sales will increase by 0.6% in February, after decreasing 0.9% in January.
With the exception of car sales, sales are expected to increase by 0.3%, compared to a decrease of 0.4% in the previous month.

The risks of continued economic uncertainty

“In light of the continuation of the uncertainty about fiscal policy, there is an expectation that the Federal Reserve will take a more cautious stance,” said Michael Gaben, the chief American economist in Morgan Stanley.

The effect of inflation on global markets

At the same time, global markets continue to face inflation, which increases the state of commercial uncertainty.
While the Japanese stock markets have shown modest gains, investors are holding great hopes for Chinese stimulus measures to revive growth in the second largest economy in the world.