US jobs data will be in focus in the coming week, while tech stocks remain in the spotlight following Nvidia’s (NVDA) latest results, with Salesforce (CRM) and Broadcom (AVGO) due to report earnings.
Given July’s disappointing US non-farm payrolls report and president Donald Trump’s subsequent firing of the head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), traders will be poring over the August data, as they weigh up the odds of the Federal Reserve cutting rates in September.
Investors will be looking for updates on the pace of adoption of Salesforce’s artificial intelligence (AI) agent platform and data cloud technology, when the customer relationship management software company reports its second quarter earnings on Wednesday.
Nvidia’s (NVDA) earnings beat and optimistic outlook on AI spending boosted the shares of fellow chipmakers, such as Broadcom (AVGO), which is scheduled to report on Thursday.
In the retail sector, American Eagle Outfitters (AEO) is set to report, with its denim brand back in the spotlight for its new collaboration with American football star Travis Kelce. This comes just a few weeks after its campaign with actress Sydney Sweeney faced backlash.
In the UK, Berkeley Group (BKG.L) is due to update on trading, as the housebuilding sector continues to face pressure amid broader economic uncertainty.
Here’s more on what to look out for:
The US economy added 73,000 non-farm payrolls in July, which was much less than the 104,000 expected by economists. The rate of unemployment also ticked higher to 4.2% from 4.1% the month prior, which was in line with economists’ expectations.
In addition, the BLS said in its release that the downward revisions to the May and June jobs reports “were larger than normal”, with those changes showing more than a quarter million fewer jobs were added to the economy over those months. May’s job gains were revised down to 19,000 from 144,000, while June’s additions were cut to just 14,000 from the 147,000 initially reported.
Hours after the release of the data, Trump moved to fire BLS commissioner Erika McEntarfer. The president then nominated conservative economist EJ Antoni to head up the labour data agency.
AJ Bell’s investment experts Russ Mould, Danni Hewson and Dan Coatsworth said: “Some took [July’s data and revisions] to mean the US economy had started to soften.
“Trump apparently took it to mean the BLS wanted his policies to look bad and took retribution – even though the softer jobs data may yet have provided the US Federal Reserve with a reason to serve up the interest rate cuts that the president craved.”
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They said that the August reading will initially be benchmarked against that 73,000 non-farm payroll figure for July, but added that the focus will swiftly move onto any further revisions to the June and July numbers.
“It would be entirely understandable had American corporations held back from taking major employment or investment decisions during the second quarter, given the uncertainty created by Trump’s tariff announcements and the manner in which deadlines were extended and negotiations conducted,” they said.
“The numbers could therefore snap back in the third and fourth quarters as trade deals are struck, final tariff levels established, and boardrooms get a clear view of what the new world looks like.”
AJ Bell’s investment experts said that further weak jobs creation data could pave the way for interest cuts from the Fed.
Following Fed chair Jerome Powell’s speech at the annual central bank symposium at Jackson Hole last week, they said that market confidence of the central bank cutting rates on 17 September rose to the point whereby an 87% probability is now put on a first one-quarter point reduction of this year, down to 4.25%.
“A further cut is seen a near-certainty by the end of the year meeting, too, perhaps in response to calls for rapid cuts from not just the president, but treasury secretary Scott Bessent, too,” they added.
Despite beating estimates and raising annual guidance, shares in Salesforce (CRM) fell following the release of its first quarter results in May, underscoring how high expectations have become around major tech stocks.
Salesforce (CRM) posted first quarter revenue of $9.83bn (£7.3bn), compared to estimates of $9.75bn. Adjusted earnings of $2.58 per share for the quarter were also ahead of an anticipated $2.44.
On the back of these results, the company lifted its full-year revenue guidance to between $41bn and $41.3bn, which would represent growth of 8% to 9%. That’s compared to previous guidance of $40.5bn to $40.9bn for the year.
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Salesforce (CRM) said it anticipated adjusted earnings per share of $11.27 to $11.33 for the year, up from previous guidance of $11.09 to $11.17.
For the second quarter, Salesforce (CRM) guided to revenue of $10.11bn to $10.16bn and adjusted earnings per share of $2.76 to $2.78.
Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: “Beyond the headline numbers, a key focus will be on the company’s progress in scaling its AI initiatives.
“At the last count, Salesforce (CRM) had signed over 8,000 new AI deals, so updates on the adoption of Agentforce and Data Cloud will also be closely watched.”
Chipmaker Broadcom (AVGO) hit a fresh high of $312.83 per share earlier this month, with the stock continuing to trade near all-time highs and up 33% year-to-date.
The company had a strong second quarter, reporting adjusted earnings of $1.58 per share compared to the Bloomberg consensus estimate of $1.56. Adjusted revenue of $15bn for the quarter, which was up 20% on the same period last year, was about in line with expectations.
Hock Tan, CEO of Broadcom (AVGO), said that the company delivered record second quarter revenue thanks to “continued momentum in AI semiconductor solutions and VMware”, which is the cloud infrastructure firm the chipmaker acquired in 2023.
“We expect growth in AI semiconductor revenue to accelerate to $5.1bn in Q3, delivering ten consecutive quarters of growth, as our hyperscale partners continue to invest,” said Tan.
For the third quarter, Broadcom (AVGO) guided to overall revenue of approximately $15.8bn and adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of at least 66% of projected revenue.
A day after Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s engagement made headlines, it was announced on Wednesday that the Kansas City Chiefs star is collaborating with American Eagle (AEO).
Kelce’s clothing brand Tru Kolors is teaming up with American Eagle (AEO) for a limited-edition collaboration, which includes reimagined varsity jackets and rugby polos.
Shares in American Eagle Outfitters (AEO) popped on the back of the announcement. Neil Wilson, UK investor strategist at Saxo Markets, said: “It seems a good time for any brand to capitalise. The stock had struggled after Bank of America said its ad campaign with Sydney Sweeney wouldn’t offset the impact of tariffs.”
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The company’s American Eagle denim brand was recently in the spotlight for controversy over its ad campaign with actress Sydney Sweeney. The campaign’s tagline – “Sydney Sweeney has great jeans” – faced backlash, as some criticised this as referencing the language of eugenics.
American Eagle Outfitters (AEO) shares are down 21% year-to-date, with the stock dipping at the start of this week after BofA analysts downgraded their rating to “underperform”.
In terms of company performance, American Eagle Outfitters (AEO) posted total net revenue of $1.1bn in the first quarter, which was down 5% on the same period last year, and an adjusted loss per share of $0.29.
For the second quarter, the company said it expected revenue to be down 5% and guided to operating income of $40m to $45m.
Jay Schottenstein, CEO of American Eagle Outfitters (AEO), said that the “the first quarter was a challenging period for our business. While we are disappointed with the results, we are taking actions to better position the company and drive stronger performance in the upcoming quarters.”
Shares in housebuilder Berkeley Group (BKG.L) are down nearly 7% year-to-date, amid broader weakness in the sector.
Richard Hunter, head of markets at Interactive Investor, said: “Berkeley (BKG.L) has an ambitious strategy and a great deal in its favour, but ultimately it operates in a cyclical sector which is currently constrained by the wider economic environment.
“There have been signs of progress, but for potential buyers the level of interest rates and general affordability are under some strain.”
In its final full-year results, published in June, Berkeley (BKG.L) reported a pre-tax profit of £528.9m ($711.59m), which was down 5% on the previous year.
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However, CEO Rob Perrins said that with more than 75% of sales secured for the coming year, the company was well-placed to deliver on its pre-tax profit guidance of £450m for the 2026 fiscal year.
Hunter said that Berkeley’s (BKG.L) “focus on the more upmarket end of the housing spectrum should be something of a shield against what has been a difficult few years for housebuilders. In addition, generally higher house prices follow on from a systemic undersupply of homes, employment levels remain strong and the recent round of wage rises (while inflationary) has helped mitigate some of the problems. The group also welcomed the current government’s more positive ambitions on planning permission and housing delivery.”
“The forward order book will be studied as it gives some visibility on earnings, while the net cash position will also be an indicator of financial strength,” he said.
“However, guarded consumer confidence remains, with the possibility of higher for longer interest rates keeping some potential new buyers on the sidelines,” Hunter added. “Even though the revitalised planning system is in train, it will take some time to bed in and the group has also pointed to the overhang of additional building regulations as part of the new industry regulator’s formation.”
Monday 1 September
Kainos (KNOS.L)
Tuesday 2 September
Ashtead (AHT.L)
Oxford Nanopore (ONT.L)
Johnson Service (JSG.L)
Alimentation Couche-Tard (ATD.TO)
Zscaler (ZS)
Nio (NIO)
Signet Jewelers (SIG)
Wednesday 3 September
M&G (MNG.L)
Hilton Food (HFG.L)
Bakkavor (BAKK.L)
NCC (NCC.L)
Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company (HPE)
Dollar Tree (DLTR)
The Campbell’s Company (CPB)
GitLab (GTLB)
GameStop (GME)
Macy’s (M)
Thursday 4 September
Genus (GNS.L)
Funding Circle (FCH.L)
Safestore (SAFE.L)
Lululemon (LULU)
DocuSign Inc. (DOCU)
Ciena (CIEN)
Friday 5 September
Ashmore (ASHM.L)
You can read Yahoo Finance’s full calendar here.
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