Key global financial headlines from overnight and this morning include:
1. Federal Reserve Holds Rates Steady for Third Consecutive Meeting Amid Dissenting Votes; Powell to Remain as Governor 2. Microsoft Reports 18% Revenue Growth and 20% Profit Increase Driven by Cloud and AI 3. Alphabet Revenue Rises 22% with Net Profit Surging 81% on Accelerating Cloud Growth 4. Amazon Net Sales Increase 17% as Profit Jumps 77%; AWS Growth Hits 15-Quarter High 5. Meta Revenue Grows 33% with Net Profit Up 61%; Full-Year Capital Expenditure Guidance Raised
The Federal Reserve announced at 2:00 AM Beijing Time on April 30 that it would maintain the benchmark interest rate unchanged at 3.50%-3.75%, marking the third consecutive meeting without a change, in line with market expectations.
The decision was approved by an 8-4 vote. Federal Reserve Governor Michelle Bowman voted against, favoring a 0.25 percentage point rate cut. Cleveland Fed President Beth Hammack, Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari, and Dallas Fed President Lorie Logan also dissented; while they supported keeping rates steady, they objected to including language in the current statement suggesting an easing bias.
During the press conference following the Fed's decision, Powell indicated he intends to continue serving as a Fed governor indefinitely. He stated he would wait until the investigation into the renovation of the Fed's headquarters is "fully transparent and completely concluded" before making any decision about his tenure.
Microsoft reported its third-quarter results for the period ending March 31, 2026, showing the following year-over-year comparisons:
Revenue reached $82.9 billion, an increase of 18% (15% growth on a constant currency basis).
Operating profit was $38.4 billion, up 20% (16% growth on a constant currency basis).
Net profit under Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) was $31.8 billion, a 23% increase. Non-GAAP net profit, excluding the impact of the OpenAI investment, was $31.79 billion, up 20% (18% growth on a constant currency basis).
Alphabet announced its first-quarter financial results for the period ending March 31, 2026.
Consolidated revenue was $109.9 billion, a 22% increase (19% growth on a constant currency basis), marking the 11th consecutive quarter of double-digit growth.
Google Services revenue was $89.6 billion, up 16% year-over-year.
Google Cloud revenue was $20.0 billion, surging 63%, primarily driven by growth in Google Cloud Platform (GCP) enterprise AI solutions, enterprise AI infrastructure, and core GCP services.
Consolidated operating profit was $39.7 billion, a 30% increase. The operating margin expanded by 2 percentage points to 36.1%.
Amazon reported its first-quarter financial results for the period ending March 31, 2026.
Net sales were $181.5 billion, an increase of 17% (15% growth excluding foreign exchange impacts).
Operating income was $23.9 billion, up 30%.
Net profit was $30.3 billion, a 77% increase.
Diluted earnings per share were $2.78, a 75% rise.
Meta Platforms announced its first-quarter financial results for the period ending March 31, 2026.
Revenue was $56.3 billion, a 33% increase (29% growth on a constant currency basis).
Operating profit was $22.9 billion, up 30%, with an operating margin of 41%.
Net profit was $26.8 billion, a 61% increase.
Diluted earnings per share were $10.44, a 62% rise.
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