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Hawkish Consolidation: Energy Shines Amid Tech Pullback · The SPY Trader

• 0:00
  Good morning and happy Saturday to all you savvy investors out there !
• 0:04
  It is 6 am on Saturday , April 18th , 2026 , here in the Pacific time zone , and you are listening to Spy Trader .
• 0:13
  I am your host , Penny Pockets , here to help you make sense of the market moves while you enjoy your morning coffee .
• 0:19
  We are looking back at a pretty wild week of trading from April 13th through the 17th .
• 0:25
  If you looked at your portfolio on Friday afternoon , you might have seen a bit of red .
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  The S&P 500 , which we track through the SPY ETF , was down 1.4 percent for the week , and the techheavy Nasdaq100 , or QQQ , took a harder hit , finishing down 2.1 percent .
• 0:44
  We are calling this a period of hawkish consolidation .
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  Basically , after the record highs we saw in March , investors are taking a breather and reacting to some news that was a bit tougher to swallow than expected .
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  The big story this week was the inflation report .
• 1:01
  Services inflation is stuck at 2.8 percent , which is higher than the Federal Reserve’s 2 percent target .
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  This has pushed the 10year Treasury yield up toward 4.5 percent , and that is making growth stocks a little less attractive right now .
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  Plus , the job market is still very strong , so the Fed is in no hurry to cut interest rates just yet .
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  In the tech sector , which we track with the XLK ETF , things were a bit bumpy .
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  Nvidia , or NVDA , actually fell 4 percent this week .
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  That happened even though they announced their new Rubin architecture .
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  It seems like investors are moving money out of those highflying chip stocks for a moment .
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  On the flip side , Microsoft , or MSFT , stayed tough because of its lead in AI software .
• 1:52
  Over in the banking world , JP Morgan Chase reported record revenue , but its stock , JPM , still dropped 3 percent after CEO Jamie Dimon warned about geopolitical risks and tightening in the economy .
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  It was not all bad news , though !
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  Energy was the absolute star of the week .
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  With Brent crude prices climbing toward 92 dollars a barrel , the XLE Energy ETF really performed .
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  Big names like ExxonMobil and Chevron were the ones keeping things bright .
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  We also saw some steady movement in Healthcare , specifically with Eli Lilly .
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  Their stock , LLY , gained some ground thanks to positive data on a new weightloss pill .
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  Some other quick hits include Tesla , which fell 5 percent this week because of a software recall in Europe , and the real estate sector , tracked by VNQ , which is still feeling the pinch of those high interest rates .
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  So , what should we do with all this information ?
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  Here are four ideas to keep your portfolio steady .
• 2:53
  First , consider some defensive rotation .
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  If the big tech names are making you nervous , take a look at the Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF , or VTI .
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  It gives you a piece of everything , including smaller companies that might jump ahead if rates eventually fall .
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  Second , it might be time to look at bonds for some steady income .
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  The iShares Core U.S.
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  Aggregate Bond ETF , or AGG , is a great way to get a cushion in case the stock market keeps sliding .
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  Third , keep an eye on energy .
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  Since global tensions are staying high , the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund , or XLE , is a solid way to hedge against inflation while getting a nice dividend .
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  Finally , do not forget about international markets .
• 3:38
  The Vanguard FTSE Developed Markets ETF , or VEA , lets you invest in Europe and Japan , where stock prices are a bit cheaper compared to the US right now .
• 3:49
  Looking ahead to next week , keep your eyes peeled for the latest consumer spending data .
• 3:55
  If that shows inflation is cooling down , we might see a big jump in the QQQ and SPY .
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  If it stays hot , we might see the S&P 500 test some lower levels .
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  That is all for this morning’s update !
• 4:09
  I am Penny Pockets , and this has been Spy Trader .
• 4:12
  Enjoy your weekend , stay diversified , and I will talk to you in a few hours !