High-Freq Data Monitor - 2026-04-29

Recite the mantra (because it is true!) -- we're in a productivity-led boom. Despite rising gasoline prices and economic uncertainty, new jobless claims dropped sharply this week. But the real shocker is corporate earnings. While estimates have been getting upgraded at a furious pace, so far this earnings season is the best since the pandemic recovery of 2021, indeed the third best in the entire history of the data. The weighted average surprise factor for the S&P 500, with about half of companies have reported, is an astonishing 22.4%!