Central bank week and earnings rush put rates, inflation and AI spending in focus

News Editor

2026-07-26 04:17:01

Rising energy prices, new U.S. tariffs and a fresh surge in AI-related capital spending have pushed inflation concerns back to the front of global markets, according to BlockBeats. Brent crude briefly moved above $100 for the first time in two months before easing to $98.38 on Friday, still up nearly 12% for the week. Markets broadly expect the Federal Reserve, the Bank of England and the Bank of Japan to leave rates unchanged next week. Even so, federal funds futures show a 35% chance of a 25-basis-point Fed hike next week, while a September increase has been fully priced in. The macro calendar is packed. Investors are watching rate decisions from the three central banks, along with U.S. second-quarter GDP, June core PCE, eurozone second-quarter GDP and July CPI data. At the same time, a heavy earnings slate is coming from SK Hynix, Meta, Microsoft, Robinhood, Qualcomm, Arm, Apple, Amazon, Coinbase, Reddit and Roblox. Attention is likely to center on how major technology companies are spending on AI and whether those investments are producing returns. Alphabet had previously raised its full-year capital expenditure forecast to $205 billion, a plan that has already drawn concern over spending levels and negative free cash flow.

Policy RegulationFederal ReserveBank of EnglandBank of JapanEarnings SeasonAI Capital SpendingInflation

Rising energy prices, new U.S. tariffs and a jump in AI capital expenditure have renewed global investor concerns about inflation, according to BlockBeats on July 26.

Brent crude moved above $100 for the first time in two months before falling back to $98.38 on Friday. Even after that pullback, it was still up nearly 12% for the week.

Markets expect the Federal Reserve, the Bank of England and the Bank of Japan to keep rates unchanged next week. Still, federal funds rate futures show a 35% chance that the Fed raises rates by 25 basis points next week, while a September hike has been fully priced in.

Key macro events next week

Next week will bring rate decisions from the Fed, the Bank of England and the Bank of Japan, as well as a run of major economic releases including U.S. second-quarter GDP, June core PCE, eurozone second-quarter GDP and July CPI.

The main dates and times listed by BlockBeats are:

Tuesday 20:15: U.S. weekly change in ADP employment for the week ending July 11.
Thursday 02:00: the Federal Open Market Committee releases its rate decision; 02:30: Federal Reserve Chair Waller holds a monetary policy press conference; 19:00: the Bank of England releases its rate decision, meeting minutes and monetary policy report; 20:30: the U.S. releases initial jobless claims, June core PCE, personal spending and second-quarter GDP.
Friday: the Bank of Japan releases its rate decision and economic outlook report, with the exact time yet to be announced; 14:30: Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda holds a press conference; 22:00: the U.S. releases final July University of Michigan consumer sentiment and one-year inflation expectations.

Earnings from major tech and crypto-linked names

SK Hynix is scheduled to report second-quarter results at 08:00 on July 29. Meta, Microsoft, Robinhood, Qualcomm and Arm are due to report after the U.S. market closes on Wednesday, while Apple, Amazon, Coinbase, Reddit and Roblox are set to report after the close on Thursday.

Investors are watching how major technology companies are spending on AI and what returns those investments are generating. Alphabet had earlier lifted its full-year capital expenditure forecast to $205 billion, and those spending plans, along with negative free cash flow, have already raised market concerns.

This article was originally published by Bit.Fan. For more cryptocurrency news and market insights, visit www.bit.fan.

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