WSJ Your Money Briefing What’s News in Markets: Fed Chair, Layoffs, Meme Stock
9 snips
Jan 31, 2026 They discuss how a new Federal Reserve nominee might reshape market expectations. The conversation covers big corporate cost-cutting and wave of layoffs. Metal price swings and a tech sell-off after major earnings get attention. A meme-stock turnaround plan and renewed investor interest round out the topics.
AI Snips
Chapters
Books
Transcript
Episode notes
Record Gold Rally Then Historic Plunge
- Gold jumped to a record and then plunged, showing extreme volatility in safe-haven assets this week.
- Metals saw their largest one-day percentage declines since 1980, underscoring rapid sentiment swings.
AI Spending Fears Hit Tech Stocks
- Microsoft’s disappointing earnings triggered a broad tech sell-off and doubts about AI infrastructure costs.
- Microsoft lost $357 billion in market value in one day, signaling investor skepticism about AI spending.
New Fed Nominee Could Shift Monetary Tone
- President Trump nominated Kevin Warsh to be Fed chair, a key decision for interest-rate policy.
- Warsh is viewed historically as an inflation hawk but recently has said the Fed should cut rates faster.
