Daily Market Report – January 28, 2026
Wednesday, January 28, 2026, around 1:00 PM (before Fed decision)
Two topics are dominating the financial markets today: the Fed decision in the evening and the question of whether the earnings season continues to justify the high valuation of large technology stocks. In the U.S., the S&P 500 briefly rose above 7,000 points – another signal of how strongly the AI-driven bull market is shaping the major indices. At 2:00 PM ET, the U.S. Federal Reserve will release its statement, followed by a press conference with Jerome Powell at 2:30 PM ET. The markets consider a pause in interest rates to be very likely: It is expected that the Fed will keep the range at 3.5% to 3.75%.
Earnings season: This week, the focus is primarily on numbers and outlooks from Microsoft NASDAQ:MSFT, Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META), and Tesla NASDAQ:TSLA; expectations for the AI-driven revenue boost are high. ASML NASDAQ:ASML: The stock jumped more than 5% at times after the chip equipment manufacturer surprised with significantly higher orders and an increased revenue outlook for 2026. The main driver is the persistently high willingness to invest in the chip industry surrounding AI data centers. At the same time, ASML announced a job cut. SK hynix KRX:000660 also rose by more than 5%, supported by a record result and strong momentum in AI memory (especially High-Bandwidth Memory). On the losing side, LVMH EPA:MC fell by more than 5%. The trigger was the quarterly numbers and the outlook, which the market interpreted as a sign of cooling demand in the luxury segment and decreasing pricing power. The price drop pulled the entire sector down.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Bessent dismissed speculation about support purchases for the yen. The U.S. dollar significantly appreciated against the EUR as a result, trading at 1.193 USD per EUR.