Today, we have a special Monday morning primer edition for you, because this week is about to get wild. We’ll hit you with what’s happening and how you can consider preparing.

Trump meets China’s Xi Thursday with a potential trade deal that removes 100% tariff threats. The Fed decides rates Wednesday with Powell's press conference immediately following. And 20% of the S&P 500 reports earnings… including most of the Magnificent 7.

But here's what matters for your portfolio this week: how do you position when everything's moving at once?

Tuesday: Visa, UnitedHealth earnings
Wednesday: Fed rate decision + Powell press conference + Microsoft, Google, Meta, Boeing, Verizon earnings
Thursday: Trump-Xi meeting + Apple, Amazon, Eli Lilly earnings
Friday: Exxon, Chevron earnings

Investors are laser-focused on Mag 7 capital expenditure guidance. OpenAI's nearly $1 trillion in infrastructure buildout plans this month (per CNBC) have raised questions about whether AI spending is sustainable or heading for a cliff.

Trump says there will be "so much critical mineral and rare earth that you won't know what to do with them," per Fortune, suggesting the trade deal includes significant commodities components.

Now we’ll share how you can prepare ⬇️

AltIndex’s top stock picks are constantly adapting to market data and social sentiment, so you better believe that we’ll be keeping our eyes glued to their top picks this week.

Here’s their top 5 right now (before the craziness of the week hits). Can you guess what the top two are at the moment?

That’s what’s happening this week. Now here’s what investors can do.

If you own stocks reporting earnings this week, look at the implied move from options pricing. This tells you what the market expects in terms of volatility.

Here’s an example: If Microsoft options are pricing a 5% move, that's the breakeven threshold for option buyers. If you think the move will be smaller, consider holding or even selling premium. If you think it'll be bigger, you might want to take profits before the report or add hedges.

Most brokerage platforms show "expected move" on the options chain (check Apple’s expected move chart for Thursday here). Alternatively, you could calculate it manually: (ATM straddle price / stock price) ≈ expected % move.

The market already expects the Fed to hold or cut 25bps. What matters is Powell's commentary on.

Honestly though, the FOMC is still divided (a lot of the Fed’s members have different ideas on how to fix the economy), so the signals might not be super clear from Powell.

Here’s a positioning tip. If Powell sounds more hawkish than expected (fewer cuts ahead), rate-sensitive sectors like REITs and utilities could get hit. If he's dovish, growth stocks might benefit.

If the China deal closes Thursday as expected:

With the Fed, Trump-Xi, and Mag 7 earnings all hitting in 72 hours, volatility will spike. The temptation is to trade every headline.

You don’t have to do that. Maybe wait until Friday to reassess. Let the dust settle, see which narratives won, then position for the next week. Chasing intraday moves during event-heavy weeks just might destroy your returns.

We love hearing from you, and we deeply appreciate your feedback.

That’s all for today. Did we miss anything? Smash the reply button to let me know.

Cheers,
Brandon & Blake of Invested Inc