Global week ahead: Is 'Sell in May' just a myth?

Cnbc · 🇮🇷 public Iran · May 03, 2026 · 508 words · By Leonie Kidd

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What to know about Global week ahead: Is 'Sell in May' just a myth?

As the trading month of May gets into full swing this week, should investors continue to follow the old adage of "sell in May and go away" — a strategy of selling stocks in May and re-entering the market in November to avoid low returns and low volumes during…

Claims checked 13

Techniques found 0

Topics 0

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage

Left0%

Center75%

Right25%

4 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

Why it matters

Testing traditional trades Right now, commonly accepted beliefs and traditional trading ideas are being tested.

Common ground

If April is anything to go by, investors could risk leaving returns on the table if they step out of stocks now.

Perspective signals

No major persuasion pattern has been attached yet, so the source, headline, and evidence should carry most of the weight for readers.

Follow-up questions

What concrete event or decision sits underneath the headline: Global week ahead: Is 'Sell in May' just a myth??
What evidence would most clearly confirm or weaken the claim that Stateside, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq have logged their best monthly performances in around six years?
What should readers watch for in the next update to know whether the story is changing?

open_in_new Read the original article: https://www.cnbc.com/2026/05/03/global-week-ahead-sell-in-may-just-a-myth.html

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 13 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

verified Verified By Reference 4

schedule Pending 3

check_circle Corroborated 3

help Insufficient Evidence 2

info Single Source 1

verified

Claim 1: “Stateside, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq have logged their best monthly performances in around six years”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

Evidence confirms that the S&P 500 and Nasdaq reached record highs, but does not provide the specific monthly performance data needed to verify if it was the best in around six years.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The S&P 500 is a stock market index maintained by S&P Dow Jones Indices. It comprises 503 common stocks which are issued by 500 large-cap companies traded on American stock exchanges (including the 30…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_S&P_500_companies

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The NASDAQ Composite (ticker symbol ^IXIC) is a stock market index that includes almost all stocks listed on the Nasdaq stock exchange. Along with the Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500, it is o…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nasdaq_Composite

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — S&P 500 (Standard and Poor's 500) is a stock market index tracking the stock performance of 500 leading companies listed on stock exchanges in the United States. It is one of the most commonly followe…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S&P_500

+ 3 more evidence sources

schedule

Claim 2: “Friday: Earnings from Commerzbank, IAG”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

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Claim 3: “For the Stoxx 600, Deutsche Bank says 'in 25 of 39 years, the "sell in May" strategy underperformed a straightforward Buy and Hold'”

CORROBORATED

Two separate web search results explicitly confirm the Deutsche Bank finding that the 'sell in May' strategy underperformed buy-and-hold in 25 of 39 years for the STOXX Europe 600.

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web search NEUTRAL — In such strategies, stock holdings are sold or minimized at about the start of May and the proceeds held in cash; stocks are bought again in the autumn, typically around Halloween.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sell_in_May

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web search NEUTRAL — The strategy underperformed buy-and-hold in 25 of 39 years, and its edge largely disappears without the sharp summer downturns of 1998, 2001 and 2002. Over the past decade, it underperformed in eight …
https://au.finance.yahoo.com/news/time-again-sell-may-away-1…

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web search NEUTRAL — While the strategy of selling the STOXX Europe 600 at the end of May and returning at the end of September would have delivered 9% annualized returns since 1987, compared to 7.4% for a simple buy-and-…
https://investments-en.rogueturtledesigns.com/finance/deutsc…

info

Claim 4: “Returns are even stronger in July at an average of 3.4%”

SINGLE SOURCE

No evidence in the provided search results specifies the 10-year average return for July as being 3.4%.

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web search NEUTRAL — Annualized Return over. 5 years.The S&P 500's record closing high of 6,932.05 was set on December 24, 2025. The index had experienced an intra-year correction, typically defined as a decline of 10 to …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S&P_500

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web search NEUTRAL — five-year average return of the S&P 500.
https://www.macrotrends.net/2526/sp-500-historical-annual-re…

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web search NEUTRAL — The S&P 500 calculator below provides both the nominal and inflation-adjusted price and total return (assuming dividend reinvestment) of U.S. stocks (i.e. the S&P 500) over any time period from Januar…
https://ofdollarsanddata.com/sp500-calculator/

schedule

Claim 5: “Wednesday: Earnings from Novo Nordisk, Infineon, BMW, Diageo and Disney”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

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Claim 6: “Federal Reserve Bank Chair Jerome Powell saying, 'inflation remains elevated'”

CORROBORATED

Multiple sources confirm that Jerome Powell stated inflation remains elevated, including a direct quote in a news report and a reference to a news conference.

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web search NEUTRAL — Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said there is "no risk-free path" for the central bank's next policy move as inflation remains elevated and the job market weakens.
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/feds-powell-sees-no-risk-free…

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web search NEUTRAL — Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell gives his thoughts on inflation risks, the economy, the timeline for cutting rates, the health of the country’s banks and...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ImrKxlLJCEY

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web search NEUTRAL — Fed Chair Jerome Powell noted during a recent news conference that most of the decline in inflation so far has stemmed from lower prices for goods, including used cars, furniture and appliances, which…
https://christianindex.org/stories/us-inflation-remains-elev…

schedule

Claim 7: “Thursday: Earnings from Shell, Rheinmetall, Maersk, BMPS and AirBnB”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

verified

Claim 8: “Europe's STOXX 600 and Germany's DAX just closed their best month since January of last year”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

While web search results provide general quotes and charts for the STOXX 600 and DAX, none of the provided evidence specifically confirms that they closed their best month since January of last year.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Notable stock market indices include:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_stock_market_indices

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The MDAX is a stock index which lists German companies trading on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. The index is calculated by Deutsche Börse. It includes the 50 Prime Standard shares that rank in size im…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MDAX

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — In finance, a stock market index or stock index is an index that measures the performance of a stock market, or of a subset of a stock market. It helps investors compare current stock price levels wit…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stock_market_index

+ 3 more evidence sources

help

Claim 9: “Monday: U.K. market holiday, April PMI data from across Europe”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was provided for this claim.

verified

Claim 10: “Italy's FTSE MIB put in an even better performance, with a near-9% rally marking the strongest month since January 2023”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

The evidence provided discusses the FTSE 100 and various Italian indices/companies, but there is no specific data regarding a near-9% rally for the FTSE MIB or its performance relative to January 2023.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Diasorin S.p.A. is an Italian multinational biotechnology company that produces and markets in vitro diagnostics reagent kits used in immunodiagnostics and molecular diagnostics and since July 2021, i…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DiaSorin

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The FTSE Italia Mid Cap is a stock market index for the Borsa Italiana, the main stock exchange of Italy. Composed with 60 companies, It is one of the indices in the FTSE Italia Index Series.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FTSE_Italia_Mid_Cap

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Italgas S.p.A. is an Italian Network Tech Company operating in the gas distribution, water services, energy efficiency, and IT sectors. Following the acquisition of 2i Rete Gas, its main competitor, I…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Italgas

+ 3 more evidence sources

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Claim 11: “ECB President Christine Lagarde warning that she is monitoring 'the impact of negative supply shocks'”

CORROBORATED

Multiple sources discuss Christine Lagarde's warnings regarding energy shocks and supply-side issues, confirming her monitoring of such economic shocks.

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web search NEUTRAL — President of the European Central Bank since 2019. Her Excellency. Christine Lagarde."particularly shocking" .[78] As part of this exercise, she successfully pushed the ECB to adopt an action plan to …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christine_Lagarde

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web search NEUTRAL — European Central Bank (ECB) President Christine Lagarde stated on Wednesday that even a moderate overshoot of the inflation target caused.She noted that the energy shock is currently smaller, particul…
https://economyglobal.com/news/ecb-president-lagarde-signals…

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web search NEUTRAL — European Central Bank (ECB) President Christine Lagarde issued a series of warnings regarding the global **energy crisis** and economic damage caused by the war with Iran.
https://newsroomin.eu/en/energy-crisis-lagarde-warns-of-loom…

verified

Claim 12: “over the past 10 years, the S&P 500 has averaged a return of 1.5% in May and a 1.9% pop in June”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

The provided evidence mentions general S&P 500 returns and historical P/E ratios, but does not list the specific 10-year average returns for May (1.5%) and June (1.9%).

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — This article is a summary of the closing milestones of the S&P 500 Index, a United States stock market index.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Closing_milestones_of_the_S&P_…

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+ 3 more evidence sources

help

Claim 13: “Tuesday: Earnings from Unicredit, HSBC, AB Inbev, Ferrari and AMD”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was provided for this claim.

info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.