Stocks closed lower on Friday and for the week.

Mixed earnings results from some high-profile names last week weighed on stocks late in the week, namely Microsoft, which had its worst day (Thurs.) in 6 years after reporting earnings. Although, for context, they posted strong numbers with quarterly EPS growth up 28.2%, and sales growth up 16.7%. While not a record, sales and EPS were strong. They did, however, set records in CapEx. And those concerns, which were dominated by record AI spending, weighed on shares.

For contrast, Apple set records as well, but in sales and earnings. The kind of records investors love, even if the reaction was muted afterwards. But I chalk that up to bad timing as the market was being dragged down for other reasons. Regardless, that translated to a quarterly EPS growth rate of 18.3%, and a sales growth of 15.7%. CEO, Tim Cook, said "iPhone had its best-ever quarter driven by unprecedented demand, with all-time records across every geographic segment," and called the demand "simply staggering."

Meta also impressed after posting double-digit top and bottom line growth, and raising revenue guidance. Investors cheered the news.

We'll hear from another 567 companies this week.

In other news, government shutdown fears contributed to Friday's weaker tone. The Senate ended up passing 5 of the 6 remaining bills to keep the government open, along with a 2-week continuing resolution (CR) on the Homeland Security bill that upended negotiations late in the process. But that means it has to go back to the House this week for their approval. Technically, the government is in a partial shutdown since the deadline was Jan 30. For all intents and purposes, if the House can pass it early in the week, it could end up being nothing more than a technical shutdown due to the calendar. But if negotiations drag on, who knows how long it could take. And when and if it does pass, there will be another deadline in 2 weeks. Although, it will be just for the DHS bill as the other parts of the government will be funded.

Additionally, concerns over a U.S. military response to Iran (due to their violent crackdown on anti-regime protesters, and their nuclear program), if diplomatic efforts fail, has the market on watch.

Also weighing on the market on Friday was the decline in both gold and silver. After a heady rally, gold sank by -11%, while silver plunged by more than -31%, for its biggest one-day drop in nearly 50 years. For the record, gold is still up 67% over the last 12 months, and silver is up a whopping 143%. Nonetheless, it was a tough day for the precious metals. And sympathy selling hit equities as a result.

Lastly, President Trump released his pick for Fed Chair to replace Jerome Powell when his term ends in May. Kevin Warsh is the nominee. While he has called for further rate cuts, and is largely expected to do so when he's positioned in June (assuming he gets confirmed), some believe he's more hawkish on rates than some of the others who were considered for the role. As a result, the dollar rallied on the news, and gold and silver fell (as mentioned above), as the 'debasement' trade was called into question. Although, I don't see that ending. As rates go down, that should cap that dollar.

That's also supportive for equities.

And with increasing growth forecasts, I'm expecting another double-digit gain in stocks this year.

See you tomorrow,