Equities started the week on solid footing but slipped late in the day on Monday following comments from Fed Chief Jerome Powell. Mr. Powell says inflation is way too high and the Fed will take steps to address it including a 50 basis point hike that could come at the next meeting. As welcome as the news is to inflation watchers it's confusing what exactly changed in the five days since the last FOMC meeting. Regardless, the takeaway is the FOMC is going to act more aggressively than the market is expecting and could spark a recession before inflation comes back into control.

This week could be a tough one for the market. There are few economic or earnings releases of importance and plenty of geopolitical and inflation risk in the air. The price of West Texas Intermediate, for example, shot up by 7% on Monday to over $112 per barrel and looks like it will head back up to the $130 level and possibly set a new high.