The Dow Jones Index continued its recent rally, rising by 15% this year and hitting its all-time high of $48,862. It has jumped by ~35% from its highest level in April this year. This article explores the top US30 Index news to watch in 2026.
Dow Jones Index to react to key earnings
The Dow Jones Index will react to corporate earnings from its constituent companies in the index. Analysts are highly optimistic that American companies will continue doing well as they did this year amid the tariff uncertainty.
Data compiled by FactSet shows that the S&P 500 Index companies experienced double-digit earnings growth in all quarters of the year.
Most of the earnings growth was driven by the artificial intelligence (AI) boom that continued for the third year. A good example of this is Nvidia, the biggest company in the world, whose revenue jumped to over $57 billion in the third quarter.
Other companies in the Dow Jones, like Walmart, Goldman Sachs, and Boeing continued to publish strong financial results during the year.
The strong earnings explain the surge in the index’s top gainers like Caterpillar, Goldman Sachs, Johnson & Johnson, Nvidia, IBM, and JPMorgan. For example, the most recent results showed that Goldman Sachs earnings jumped, helped by the trading boom and the return of investment banking.
Therefore, the Dow Jones Index will react to earnings as they will provide more color on growth, and most importantly, the AI boom.
Federal Reserve news
The other important news that will impact the Dow Jones and other US indices are the Federal Reserve. One of the Fed news items will be the appointment of the next chairman by Donald Trump and the vetting process.
Trump has interviewed several potential officials, including Kevin Hassett, Kevin Warsh, Christopher Waller, and Rick Rieder. Market participants now expect that Hassett will be nominated to replace Jerome Powell.
The potential nominee will have a major impact on the Dow Jones and other indices as Trump has vowed to appoint an official who will cut interest rates.
Still, the bank’s decisions will be determined by the whole FOMC committee, and there are chances that the members will push back against the chairman.
The other Fed news that will impact the Dow Jones Index are the monetary policy decisions, which will happen in January, March, April, June, July, September, November, and December.
Most analysts believe that the bank will deliver at least three interest rate cuts in 2026, a move that may boost American stocks.
The other major Fed news will be the firing of Lisa Cook, who Trump accused of conducting mortgage fraud. A court will deliver the verdict on whether the firing was justified. If it is upheld, it means that Trump may fire more Fed officials who are not ready to cut rates.
Additionally, the index will react to the upcoming macro data, like inflation and the labor market, which will help to determine the next Fed action.
AI boom to continue?
The other important Dow Jones Index news will be on the AI boom, which has propelled American stocks to record highs this year.
Therefore, there are concerns about whether the boom will continue and whether it will burst during the year. Fears that the latter will happen explains why top stocks like Nvidia and Oracle have slumped in the past few weeks.
The upcoming earnings will help to determine whether the boom in the AI industry is accelerating. For example, a significant slowdown in earnings and forward guidance of top companies like Nvidia and Microsoft will help to determine this.
Other catalysts for the Dow Jones Index
There will be other major catalysts for the Dow Jones Index this year, including geopolitics like the relationship between the US and China, and the ongoing war in Ukraine. China will deliver its decision on rare earth materials exports later during the year.
The index will also react to the US midterm election in which Democrats are expected to win by a landslide.
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