The S&P 500 (Index: SPX) continued setting new highs during the fifth and final week of August 2018, with its highest closing value to date set at 2,914.04 on Wednesday, 29 August 2018. The index went on to finish the week slightly lower at 2,901.52.

The recent uptrend in stock prices has lifted the trajectory of the S&P 500 toward the upper end of our red-zone forecast, which has just five trading days left to run. Overall, we think that investors are splitting their forward-looking focus between 2018-Q4 and 2019-Q1 in setting today’s stock prices, which we think will continue in the absence of news that might more definitively focus their attention on one of these points of time in the future.

As for what news might be behind the market’s recent upward momentum, here are the headlines that we weighted more heavily for their effect upon investor outlook in Week 5 of August 2018.

Monday, 27 August 2018

  • Oil gains, supported by rising stock market, U.S.-Mexico trade deal
  • U.S., Mexico reach NAFTA deal, turn up pressure on Canada
  • S&P 500, Nasdaq hit new highs on U.S.-Mexico trade deal

    • Tuesday, 28 August 2018

  • Oil dips on profit-taking, trade deal limits decline
  • Wall Street ekes out gains as Canada takes trade spotlight

    • Wednesday, 29 August 2018

  • Oil rises to multi-week highs on U.S. stock draw, falling Iran exports
  • Wall Street extends rally, tech leads S&P, Nasdaq to record highs

    • Thursday, 30 August 2018

  • Crude rises to highest since July on sanction concerns
  • Trump threatens to withdraw U.S. from World Trade Organization: Bloomberg
  • Trump says he could link cap gains taxes to inflation: Bloomberg
  • U.S. stocks drop on fear of escalated trade spat; Argentine peso roiled

    • Friday, 31 August 2018

  • Oil slips as trade war worries outweigh Iran sanctions
  • U.S. to move ahead with Mexico trade pact, keep talking to Canada
  • Wall Street mixed as U.S.-Canada trade talks end
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