Bloomberg US Equities Reporter Natalia Kniazhevich said the momentum trade that powered the US stock market through the first half of 2026 is starting to fade, following a weaker-than-expected June payrolls report. June nonfarm payrolls came in at 57,000, well below estimates in the 100,000 to 110,000 range, though the unemployment rate ticked down to 4.2%. The report pushed July rate-hike odds to effectively zero, with markets pricing only about 30 basis points of Fed moves by year-end. Kniazhevich noted that the momentum factor is up 28% year to date but is now fading, with the Invesco QQQ Trust slipping 4.5% over the past month while the iShares Russell 2000 ETF gained 2.03%. She added that hedge funds are taking profits ahead of the summer vacation period after one of the best quarters in history, per Goldman Sachs.