Markets opened green across the board after a heavy week of data. Stocks may close a down week with a strong Friday, and traders are already looking to next week.
A packed week ahead
Nvidia (NVDA) reports earnings after the bell next Wednesday, and that day is loaded with economic data before the bell: durable goods, the second look at GDP, and personal income and outlays. Three of the top six data points for the whole month land that morning. A slow data week usually gets followed by a heavy one, and next week fits that pattern. Consumer sentiment numbers come Friday and have been weaker lately. Other earnings due include Dick's Sporting Goods (DKS), Intuit (INTU), CrowdStrike (CRWD), Salesforce (CRM), and Workday (WDAY), though most of earnings season is done.
Bitcoin's momentum run
Bitcoin trades near 77,000 and is up 23% week-to-date, its best week in two years. The move is news-driven. Sentiment shifted when President Trump hosted crypto leaders at the White House and called for passing the Clarity Act. That bill is on the agenda for September 15 and now has bipartisan support, looking far more positive than in early August when Congress rushed toward its break with a packed schedule. John Thune has been working on it. The higher broad market is adding to Bitcoin's boost. This is day two of a large rally.
Anthropic and OpenAI IPO race
Anthropic filed a couple weeks ago but stayed quiet on timing. The talk now points to sooner rather than later, with a potential public listing as soon as the end of August. Anthropic expects to match or beat the size of SpaceX's record-setting IPO. Its annual revenue is running around 65 billion, compared with OpenAI at 45 billion. OpenAI said this week it is real and plans a debut in 2027 or possibly sooner. Anthropic looks much closer.
Broadcom reverses
Broadcom (AVGO) had a rough week after the Marvell (MRVL) and Google (GOOGL) news helped Marvell and hurt Broadcom. That flipped. Broadcom is in talks with lenders to raise $60 billion in debt for an AI semiconductor financing deal that would benefit Anthropic and other firms. Broadcom keeps big customers, including Meta Platforms (META), and holds a long-term deal with Alphabet (GOOGL), keeping it central in custom AI chips. The stock rose about 1.5% pre-market on the news.
Retail and the consumer
Ross Stores (ROST) is one of the day's more interesting stories. Discounters like Walmart (WMT) and TJX (TJX) struggled, while full-price retailers like Target (TGT) and Ralph Lauren (RL) did well. Ross beat with $2.66 a share against a 1.94 estimate, though 60 cents of that came from tariff refunds. Sales rose 13% year-over-year. Ross is a discount retailer that leans on younger shoppers and heavy social media following, and the numbers showed. The stock jumped big pre-market.
Tariff refunds brought strength across retailer numbers all week. Walmart said it will use its big tariff payback to keep prices low. The US consumer, when employed, stays reliable. Walmart had sold off after a miss tied partly to a one-off in its pharmaceutical numbers, possibly GLP-related or from falling pricing, plus a slightly high valuation. JP Morgan (JPM) issued a note to buy Walmart on the dip given its revenue. Target is finding its role again in big-box retail. Amazon (AMZN) and other retailers posted solid numbers. TJX was the one worry, raising concern about off-price.
Oil and Iran
Crude oil is the clearest gauge of Iran tensions. It sits at 86.72, down about 10 to 12 cents this morning and off yesterday's highs, which may help stocks. Crude is up 5.2% on the week, down 6% over one month, and up 38% year to date in 2026. The Trump administration keeps pressuring countries to stop trading with Iran, with possible new developments Monday. The approach is long-term economic isolation, and Scott Bessent is set to add record sanctions to hit Iran's finances and push it toward a deal.
