Now that this earnings run has come to a close, here's what we're pondering: the AI trade, the American Consumer, and whether the Magnificent 7 are still Magnificent.
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Even though the AI trade is unwinding, when it comes to AI tools, Americans are using them more than ever before. Monthly visits to chatgpt․com, OpenAI's web-based chatbot, have soared to 610 million, up 83% year on year. Despite a very confusing suite of product names, OpenAI's core offering, ChatGPT, is quickly becoming a go-to tool for Americans. Interestingly, visits spike on weekdays and subside on the weekends, suggesting that we're using ChatGPT for work.
Stocks said TGIF and reversed big losses toward the end of last week to finish with a decent gain, ending up 0.6%, though overall the S&P had its worst week of 2025. The Nasdaq 100 gained 0.7% and the Russell 2000 rose 0.4% Friday, all coming back from a deficit of more than 1%. Other bright spots included Broadcom, which posted big gains after its strong earnings report, and Walgreens Boots Alliance, which jumped after the pharmacy chain agreed to be acquired by Sycamore Partners.
Test your knowledge of last week's news with our weekly quiz:
On Tuesday, salad maker Sweetgreen announced it would be launching a fast-food staple. What is it? Check your answer.
Earnings season is when we finally get clarity on the companies we follow, when months of observation, analysis, intuition, and (most importantly) expectations finally conclude with the release of the hard numbers. It's a moment when the inferred becomes the inevitable, when the unknown becomes the unavoidable, and when open questions become solid answers.
That said, that ain't always the case. Sometimes we enter earnings season with a whole lot of answers — things like "the data center trade" and "the strength of the American consumer" — and end up leaving with a lot more questions than we started with. Now that this earnings run has come to a close, here's what we're pondering:
So is the AI trade still on or not?The protagonist of the stock market is and remains Nvidia, which has been a kingmaker among the companies swimming in its wake and a moneymaker for everyone else. When great earnings came in and the market reacted with a big meh, that's a sign that the AI trade that's been fueling the market this year is getting a little long in the tooth.
How is the American consumer really doing? If there was an inflection point this earnings season, it had to be Walmart's earnings, when the retailer reported some pretty great numbers for Q4 while also lowering guidance for 2025 given some uncertainty around consumer sentiment. This had the fairly direct effect of kneecapping the American stock market for weeks to come. The question is, how right are they?
Are the seven still Magnificent? Or is BATMMAAN finally defeated?The Magnificent 7 were up north of 20% after the US presidential election but have been unable to maintain gains. The biggest drag is Nvidia, but computing titan Microsoft and tech-slash-retailing juggernaut Amazon are both down.
THE TAKEAWAY
Earnings season is when we reap what we sow. Turns out we were sowing a lot of questions about the economy and where it's actually going.
 
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Words, words, words: the chaotic nature of President Trump's economic announcements is exhausting markets. Amid seemingly nonstop chatter about on-again, off-again plans to slap massive tariffs on Canada and Mexico, it's fascinating to see the effect of his administration's words on tariff-sensitive stocks like GM — and how after a while, the market stopped caring. See it day by day in charts.
Mind the Gap:the Gap's stock is soaring, back to where it was in 1998... and 2012, and 2017, and 2020, and 2024. After years of store closures and slumping sales, the '90s mall staple may finally be finding its footing. We love a comeback story amid an overall tough earnings season for the retail industry.
Trump signed an executive order on Thursday to establish the much-awaited crypto reserve, and while the EO emphasizes bitcoin, it does allow for "digital assets other than bitcoin." It also prioritizes filling the digital coffers with coins that are seized, not bought, and investors didn't seem to like that one bit.
Tuesday: January Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey. Earnings expected from Dick's Sporting Goods and Kohl's
Wednesday: February Consumer Price Index. Earnings expected from Adobe and American Eagle
Thursday: February Producer Price Index. Earnings expected from Dollar General, Ulta Beauty, and Weibo
Friday: March preliminary consumer sentiment
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