By Connor Smith

What a Year. It's felt like more than just a month on Wall Street.

Today, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 179 points, or 0.4%. Though it rose 1.7% in January, those gains were front-loaded. The index has fallen in three-consecutive weeks for its longest weekly losing streak since December 2024, according to Dow Jones Market Data.

From another perspective things are going swell; this January's gain marked the Dow's ninth-straight positive month, for its longest monthly winning streak since 2018.

The S&P 500 fell 0.4% on the day to wrap the month up 1.4%. The Nasdaq Composite fell 0.9% on the day but rose 0.9% on the month.

President Donald Trump said today that he would nominate Kevin Warsh, a former Federal Reserve governor, to replace Jerome Powell as chair of the central bank.

My Barron's colleague Matt Peterson writes that Warsh has promised "regime change" at the Fed:

The nominee has made clear he thinks the Powell Fed -- by being too focused on the minutiae of outdated economic data -- hasn't recognized that government spending and the amount of money in circulation are the primary determiners of inflation.

Warsh has said the Powell Fed "has failed" and lost the faith of the markets. The chair not only needs to get rates right but also to "look like you know what you're doing," Warsh told Barron's in a sit-down a few months ago.

Trump clearly finds that quality in Warsh, who is "central casting," the president said on Friday.

The Warsh pick was just one more surprise for the market to digest.

"If we could go a weekend without some sort of tariff threats, or arresting of a foreign leader, or threatening to bomb Iran -- if we could go a couple of days, I think the market would appreciate it," Sevens Report Research's Tom Essaye told me. "I think it would help sentiment a bit and let us refocus on the data -- which is pretty Goldilocks -- and earnings, which, on balance, are fine."

What he said.

Watch our TV show on Fox Business Saturday and Sunday at 10:30 a.m. ET. This week, Nuveen's Saira Malik on what investors can expect from a Warsh Fed. Plus, ailing health stocks.

The Hot Stock: Deckers Outdoor +19.5% The Biggest Loser: AppLovin -16.9%

Best Sector: Consumer Staples +1.4% Worst Sector: Materials -1.8%

This Weekend's Magazine

The Calendar

Next week's economic highlight is the Bureau of Labor Statistics' jobs report set to be released on Friday, assuming there is no government shutdown. The White House and Democrats have agreed to a deal to avert a partial shutdown, but the House of Representatives won't be able to vote on any funding bill until Monday. Current funding for the government ran out at midnight on Friday.

Earnings season has gotten off to a solid start with about 165 S&P 500 index companies having already released results. Roughly three-quarter have beaten earnings-per-shares estimates while nearly two-thirds have surpassed sales expectations. Next week is the busiest of the season with more than 115 more companies set to report. Palantir Technologies and Walt Disney kick off the week on Monday, followed by Advanced Micro Devices and Merck on Tuesday. Alphabet and Eli Lilly announce quarterly results on Wednesday, while Amazon.com and Bristol Myers Squibb report on Thursday.

-- Dan Lam

What We're Reading Today

   -- Silver Is Paying for Its Excesses. Silver Miner Stocks May Be a Buy. 
 
   -- How DOJ's Powell Investigation Could Delay Confirmation of Trump's Pick 
      for Fed 
 
   -- Google's Project Genie Hammers Gaming Stocks. Unity Software and Roblox 
      Sink. 
 
   -- Kevin Warsh Is Trump's Man -- and His Own. How He Will Reshape the Fed. 
 
   -- And this week's cover story: He's Wall Street's Biggest Showman. Should 
      You Trust Him? 

Join Barron's Live on Monday at noon ET. Barron's Lauren R. Rublin and Paul R. La Monica will be joined by John Hathaway, a veteran gold analyst and portfolio manager at Sprott Asset Management USA, for a discussion of metals, miners, and more.

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January 30, 2026 19:55 ET (00:55 GMT)

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