Some big players in earnings this week, particularly for AI stocks as Baidu and NVIDIA release figures. Zoom earnings may also prove pivotal as the company tries to break from its post pandemic plateau. The week will also see some key metrics and data releases including central bank decisions and a broad spread of PMI data across the US and Europe. A lot to unpack with no breaks until the weekend.

Here are the week’s key events:

Monday

Starting the week off with some velocity, e-meeting mainstay Zoom releases earnings first thing on Monday. Zoom’s EPS presented analysts with some outperformance in April, but the company still seems to be struggling to win over investors; with share price down over 12% since February. Could another positive earnings surprise turn things around? Elsewhere the People’s Bank of China will be making another rate call today as well (following the surprise cuts on Tuesday 15^th) – will China remain a global outlier with deflationary pressures mounting and more rate cuts on the table? On a final note, those watching the UK housing market for cracks may take interest in Rightmove’s Housing Price Index being released today.

Earnings - Zoom

Tuesday

Traders will want to watch for AI challenger Baidu’s Earnings on Tuesday as the market looks to solidify general sentiments surrounding the budding technology. The Chinese company recently made orders for huge quantities of NVIDIA chips to power new AI projects. Could strong earnings and AI hype help Baidu break from its sideways trading pattern? Tuesday will also see New Zealand retail sales figures as a key metric for the nation's economic health.

Earnings – Baidu

Wednesday

Another big day for AI stocks as big hitter NVIDIA releases their latest earnings figures. NVIDIA is up nearly 200% YTD. As above, Baidu is not the only company flocking to NVIDIA in anticipation of the AI revolution - this ramping demand has helped NVIDIA offer investors a very optimistic forecast with revenue for the current quarter exceeding expectations by $4 billion. Less exciting but perhaps more important – Wednesday also brings Services and Manufacturing PMI data from the US, Australia, France, Germany and the UK. Lots of figures to digest for the global investor.

Earnings - NVIDIA

Thursday

No earnings, but plenty to take note of on Thursday. US GDP, US Jobless Claims and ECB Monetary Policy Meeting Accounts will see the market taking measure of broader signals as we move closer towards the week’s market close. Jobless Claims data will be scrutinized for any signs of improvement to US labour market recovery. Meanwhile, the release of the ECB Monetary Policy Meeting Accounts will provide investors with a deeper understanding of the central bank's recent discussions and potentially shed some light on upcoming decisions.

Friday

Winding down now, National Banana Split Day is unlikely to render any split opinions. With the addition of a revised University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Report and Core CPI figures out of Tokyo - traders may use this Friday to regather their thoughts and make sense of the various data releases over the course of the week.