Weekly Global Market Commentary
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Market Recap - Week Ending 01/27/2012 - 01/30/2012
Unfortunately, things do not look a whole lot brighter for investors yearning for bigger bond coupons in today?s yield-starved world of fixed income investing.
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Market Recap - Week Ending 01/20/2012 - 01/23/2012
Last week investors become more comfortable with Europe?s progress in tackling the ongoing debt crisis and U.S. economic data showed further signs of recovery which sent risk markets higher and longer-dated Treasuries lower.
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Market Recap - Week Ending 01/13/2012 - 01/16/2012
Early last week stocks continued their fifth week of rallying off of the November 25, 2011 lows stoked by increasing optimism about the upcoming corporate earnings reporting season, hopes for a self-sustaining U.S. recovery and, most importantly a lack of negative news coming out of the euro zone for a few days.
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Market Recap - Week Ending 01/06/2012 - 01/09/2012
A strong equity market rally welcomed in the New Year last Tuesday, the first trading day of 2012, as positive sentiment fueled by improving U.S. manufacturing data encouraged investors to buy riskier assets.
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Market Recap - Week Ending 12/16/2011 - 12/19/2011
Last week saw more of the same general trend of lackluster U.S. economic data and flagging confidence in the euro zone?s ability to resolve its core issues causing global equity and commodity markets to fall and Treasury bond prices to rise. Early in the week, the major credit rating agencies reduced their outlook for European debt and American retail sales disappointed.
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Market Recap - Week Ending 12/09/2011 - 12/12/2011
Last week markets were again driven by euro zone events including announcements from the much anticipated European Summit meeting in Brussels and the regular European Central Bank (ECB) policy meeting in Frankfurt. Last Thursday, ECB policy makers relieved risk markets by cutting interest rates for a second straight month and indicated that they may use other monetary policy tools to stimulate bank lending in an effort to fight off a recession in the troubled region.
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Market Recap - Week Ending 11/25/2011 - 11/28/2011
The S&P had the worst thanksgiving week since 1932, due to the euro crisis coupled with the failure of American policy makers to reach an agreement for reducing the federal budget, with energy stocks taking the brunt of the loss. US treasuries fell below 2% for the first time in 8 weeks, as the euro area uncertainty fueled the demand for safe haven investments.
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Market Recap - Week Ending 11/18/2011 - 11/22/2011
Concerns over further political and macroeconomic deterioration in Europe combined with congressional gridlock inside America?s new budgeting supercommittee trumped all else last week as risk markets plunged, ignoring a continuation of positively trending U.S. economic data points.
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Market Recap - Week Ending 11/11/2011 - 11/14/2011
Volatility remained heightened last week as risk markets vacillated between disruptive euro area political events offset by a raft of relatively strong S&P 500 earnings reports. In Europe, Italy took center stage with stock markets tumbling over three percent on Wednesday in reaction to Italian president, Silvio Berlusconi, announcing his intention to resign.
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Market Recap - Week Ending 11/04/2011 - 11/07/2011
News from the embattled euro zone region drove risk markets lower last week as Greek and Italian officials postured in front the G-20 meeting in Cannes walking a fine line between appeasing the core European states, but still doing their best to assuage their increasingly unhappy constituents.
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Third Quarter 2011 Fixed Income Review and Outlook - 10/31/2011
Investors sought the perceived safety of U.S. government bonds over the third quarter of 2011 as fears of a ?double-dip? recession and further turmoil in Europe drove Treasury bond prices higher with yields on most maturities falling to historic lows. Despite the downgrade of America?s debt by the S&P's credit rating agency, investors piled into Treasuries during the quarter bidding up prices along the curve.
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Market Recap - Week Ending 10/21/2011 - 10/24/2011
The unfolding ?euro-saga? once again swayed markets in volatile trading sessions last week. This time the focus was on speculation over the outcome from the latest European Summit meeting which began in Geneva this weekend. Highlighting the importance of an orderly credit restructuring in Europe, markets plunged across the globe last Monday as hopes of a smooth debt resolution were dimmed by comments from Germany's finance chief, Wolfgang Schaeuble who stated that expectations were ?too optimistic?.
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Market Recap - Week Ending 10/14/2011 - 10/17/2011
Stocks rebounded globally last week while U.S. Treasuries traded down on renewed optimism over a possible European debt crisis resolution and better U.S. retail sales. In the latest of a long slew of news bits from Europe, the Slovakian government last week finally conceded to approving an expansion of the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) to 440 billion euros after an initial dissenting vote.
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Market Recap - Week Ending 10/07/2011 - 10/10/2011
Stock markets rose while U.S. Treasury bonds nudged lower last week in anticipation of a modestly better U.S employment report concluding an eventful week in the capital markets. On Friday, it was announced that nonfarm payrolls increased by 103,000 in September and the unemployment rate held steady at 9.1% according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
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Market Recap - Week Ending 09/30/2011 - 10/03/2011
Despite a sloppy trading day on Friday, last week saw stock markets edge modestly higher on better-than-expected U.S. capital goods orders and an improved outlook for resolution of the euro zone crisis. On Thursday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel won a small victory by clinching support within her own party to pass a bill enlarging the euro zone bailout fund without having to rely on the opposition.
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Market Recap - Week Ending 09/26/2011 - 09/26/2011
In Europe, Moody?s downgraded 8 Greek banks by 2 notches. Investors have been waiting anxiously to hear when Greece will be getting their next round of bailouts to avoid defaulting next month. In the event of a default, banks across Europe are slated to take a substantial hit which some economists believe could push the global economy into another recession. Angela Merkel was quoted on a Sunday talk show in Germany stating that ?We are buying time for Greece and other countries, so that the euro remains stable.?
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Market Recap - Week Ending /09/16/2011 - 09/19/2011
Last week global stock markets showed signs of stabilization and began to bounce towards the end of the week despite the ongoing turmoil in Europe and an anemic U.S. retail sales report announced on Wednesday. Capping one of the strongest short term rallies in recent years, U.S. Treasury bond prices began to soften on Thursday after the U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI) gauge of inflation was reported higher-than-expected and investors started buying riskier assets again.
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Market Recap - Week Ending /09/09/2011 - 09/12/2011
Last week global equity markets slid, U.S. Treasury bonds rallied and the greenback soared in response to heightened political and economic uncertainty, fears that the euro crisis may soon be coming to a head and an increased probability of a ?double-dip? recession. Over the week, U.S. Treasury bonds reached new highs across the curve as yields fell below the critical two percent level on the ten-year issue, closing the week at an all-time low of 1.89% on Friday. Falling yields mathematically cause bond prices to rise but not all bonds increased in value.
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Market Recap - Week Ending /09/02/2011 - 09/06/2011
Friday?s U.S. unemployment report capped another volatile week in the markets as fears of further global economic stagnation trumped recent hopes that a rebound in the risk markets might be indicating a modestly better outlook. At the end of the week the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that payrolls were flat in August against the consensus estimate for a 68k increase.
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Market Recap - Week Ending /08/19/2011 - 08/22/2011
Over the past several weeks investors have had to fasten their seat belts as markets gyrated wildly back and forth responding to almost every economic news bit or comment from a government official. As of this writing, the summer?s downward spiral had been briefly punctuated by a few slivers of modestly better U.S. economic data last week together with supportive comments from U.S. Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke which added a modicum of price support amid the ongoing global economic struggles before markets tumbled back down again.
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Market Recap - Week Ending /08/12/2011 - 08/15/2011
Lazy summer afternoons were anything but last week as Tuesday and Thursday saw explosive late-day stock market rallies following sharp sell offs in the prior sessions on Monday and Wednesday. While Tuesday?s market surge of 4.74% on the S&P 500 average can be credited to Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke?s relatively constructive comments after the regularly scheduled FOMC committee meeting, Thursday?s rise of 4.63% is less easily sourced.
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Market Recap - Week Ending /08/05/2011 - 08/08/2011
Stocks and commodities plunged last week in one of most severe sell offs since the beginning of the Great Recession. At the same time, U.S. Treasury bonds and high grade credits soared as interest rates fell across the curve bottoming at close to historically low levels on the fallout from the quirky U.S. budget debate, probability of a U.S. credit downgrade and fears of a "double-dip" recession.
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Market Recap - Week Ending /07/29/2011 - 08/08/2011
The good news is that over the weekend Washington finally managed to ?herd cats? into a rather complex yet seemingly digestible compromise that if approved would avert a potentially cataclysmic debt default. Brokered by President Obama, the deal includes a $2.1 trillion increase in the debt ceiling offset by approximately $1 trillion in deficit reduction through discretionary spending caps over a ten-year period.
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Market Recap - Week Ending /07/22/2011 - 07/25/2011
Political showdowns reached a head on both sides of the Atlantic last week as European government leaders came to terms with the inevitability of a Greek bond default while American politicians hotly debated how to balance the bloated budget, lift the debt ceiling and forge a reasonable comprise in front of the August 2nd deadline in order not to default on U.S. Treasury interest payments.
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Market Recap - Week Ending /07/15/2011 - 07/18/2011
Stocks rose modestly last Friday, trimming the Standard & Poor's 500 Index's weekly drop, as Clorox Co. received a buyout offer from Carl Icahn and Citigroup Inc. exceeded profit estimates, which was followed by JP Morgan's strong second quarter earnings report the day before. The technology sector was also buoyed by Google Inc. stock surging 13 percent after reporting strong sales and showing some progress in expanding beyond search advertising.
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Market Recap - Week Ending /07/08/2011 - 07/11/2011
Economists were once again left scratching their heads after the European Central Bank (ECB) increased its benchmark rate by 25 basis points to 1.5 percent last Thursday, the second increase in three months. Rates hikes increase credit costs and tend to squash growth ? an unusual policy for a troubled region teetering on the edge of massive sovereign credit defaults likely to ripple throughout the European financial system.
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Market Recap - Week Ending 07/01/2011 - 07/04/2011
Greeks took to the streets again during a two-day worker?s strike setting the stage for last week?s volatile trading sessions which closed out the end of the second quarter. But Greeks bearing gripes were not enough to prevent Prime Minister Papandreou from securing enough votes to pass an austerity plan needed to meet the European Union aid requirements and avoid a hazardous bond default.
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Market Recap - Week Ending 06/24/2011 - 06/27/2011
"Buy the rumor, sell the news" proved to be the right strategy last week as global stock markets and other so-called risky assets rallied in front of last Tuesday's Greek "no confidence vote" only to fall back shortly afterwards. Early in the week, Greek Prime Minister Papandreou's government resembled a cat with extra lives as it managed to survive the crucial confidence motion by a narrow 155-145 vote.
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Market Recap - Week Ending 06/17/2011 - 06/21/2011
Markets remained choppy last week as an early-week stock market rally faltered on renewed euro zone troubles. By mid-week modestly improved U.S. housing and employment numbers were overshadowed by rumors of an impending Greek bond default as mobs took to the streets protesting the latest round of proposed austerity measures setting the stage for yet another euro zone showdown.
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Market Recap - Week Ending 06/10/2011 - 06/14/2011
The last few weeks' stock market correction has been in reaction to a barrage of gloomy economic reports with most risk markets trending down on the bad news trifecta of stubbornly high unemployment, weaker manufacturing and falling home prices with little hope in sight. Responding to the latest data, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke delivered a speech in Atlanta last Tuesday declaring "Until we see a sustained period of stronger job creation, we cannot consider the recovery to be truly established."
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Market Recap - Week Ending 06/03/2011 - 06/06/2011
April showers - and spring natural disasters - brought May flowers with some dandelions. And so lamented Sharon Lee Stark, Fixed Income Strategist and Managing Director of Sterne Agee, in a recent weekly piece: "A spring chockfull of natural disasters both here and abroad that disrupted supply chains and tested the mettle of our resolve. What are we left with? Green shoots that blossomed into dandelions, or little patches of flowers amidst a field of crab grass and scrub."
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Market Recap - Week Ending 05/27/11 - 05/30/2011
Stocks and commodities rose on news from the G8 Meeting that the global economy is strengthening. Long Canadian bonds rallied to the most in 9 months on Friday upon news that global growth is slowing. Greece was further hit by problems as their opposition parties failed to come to an agreement on austerity plans.
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Market Recap - Week Ending 05/20/11 - 05/23/2011
Italy and Greece both were hit with a ratings down-grade amid fears of default. LinkedIn launched its IPO Thursday doubling share value in the debut. Spanish Prime Minister is defeated in local elections due to backlash of austerity measures. The Canadian dollar dropped its most in almost 6 month due to stalling oil prices which accounts for half of Canada?s export revenue.
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Market Recap - Week Ending 05/13/11 - 05/16/2011
Markets staggered towards the end of the week with a pullback midweek reversing the early week rally. In the US, Employment claims fell less than expected and retail sales rose for a 10th month in April. US Treasuries rallied to their highest point this year amidst EU debt fears. Asset-back securities saw stronger bids due to investors seeking protection against rising interest rates in Europe led by Santander and Volkswagen.
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LOM Market Recap May 9th, 2011 - 05/09/2011
Last week commodities sold off, the US dollar touched a two-and-a-half year low and Friday?s monthly unemployment report showed surprising strength. Early in the week commodities tumbled across the board on concerns over slowing growth around the globe. The sell off was led by a 25 percent drop in silver prices and a 15 percent drop in oil.
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Market Recap - Week Ending 04/22/11 - 04/25/2011
Obama will examine traders and speculators in oil markets in order to "root out any cases of fraud or manipulation". Treasuries rallied amidst speculation that the federal budget deficit may hamper growth. 10yr note yields fell to their lowest level in over a month even after the U.S. Government lost its stable AAA credit rating outlook.
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Market Recap - Week Ending 04/15/11 - 04/19/2011
Markets were neutral on Friday, after the core inflation report barely budged 0.1% causing 2 year Treasury notes to fall to 0.71% from a recent peak of 0.83% and further reinforcing the belief that U.S. interest rates should be left unchanged.
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Market Recap - Week Ending 04/08/11 - 04/13/2011
The past five days remained flat as stocks struggled to gain momentum due to a midweek sell off. Most, however, held their 10-day moving averages. Japanese economic fall out continues, as Toyota plants have been shut down forcing American plants to follow suit. The US Federal Government narrowly avoided a shut down on Friday as congress reached an impasse on whether or not to increase the federal deficit. The US Labor Department reported that over 300 metro areas had a decrease in unemployment showing that the increase in jobs is not isolated to only one region. Silver continued to out-perform gold, reaching new highs on Monday. Oil continued its drive north of $110 due to unrest in the Middle East as protests continue to intensify in Syria and Yemen .
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Market Recap - Week Ending 04/01/11 - 04/05/2011
Equities continued their rally for the second week on Friday with the S&P recording its best two week period since December as the market remains bullish amid a spate of global take over deals totaling $12 billion.
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Market Recap - Week Ending 03/25/11 - 03/28/2011
Stocks managed to advance last week, as investors turned their attention to strong corporate earnings and shrugged off geopolitical concerns. The German DAX, French CAC, and Japanese Nikkei were especially strong, after having sold off during the previous two weeks.
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Market Recap - Week Ending 03/18/11 - 03/23/2011
Worldwide equity markets sold off heavily following the devastating earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan on March 11th. The Nikkei and German DAX were particularly hard-hit, but recovered somewhat later in the week.
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Market Recap - Week Ending 03/11/11 - 03/14/2011
Worldwide equity markets traded down sharply last week, punctuated by Friday?s devastating earthquake in Japan, which led to further stock selling.
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Market Recap - Week Ending 03/04/11 - 03/07/2011
The Dow, S&P, and NASDAQ were more-or-less flat for the week, despite more bloodshed in Libya and surging oil prices. The U.S. released a strong jobs report on Friday; unemployment fell to a 2 1/2 year low of 8.9%. In Toronto, stocks rallied on higher commodity prices and strong bank earnings. Foreign equity markets were predominantly higher.
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Market Recap - Week Ending 02/25/11 - 02/28/2011
Worldwide equity markets retreated last week following violent outbreaks in several oil producing countries, notably Libya.
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Market Recap - Week Ending 02/18/11 - 02/22/2011
Stocks moved higher for the third straight week, with the S&P 500 index now having officially doubled from its lows of March 2009.
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Market Recap - Week Ending 02/11/11 - 02/15/2011
U.S. and European equity markets continued their prolonged upward movements last week. Canadian markets were relatively unchanged, while Hong Kong saw a significant sell-off, prompted by an outflow of funds from Greater China markets.
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Market Recap - Week Ending 02/04/11 - 02/09/2011
Equity markets continued to rally last week following impressive corporate earnings and positive economic data, including a strong ISM manufacturing report on Tuesday. Further, a better-than-expected non-farm payroll figure on Thursday indicated that the U.S. job market may finally be rebounding.
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Market Recap - Week Ending 01/21/11 - 01/24/2011
After climbing higher since early December, equity markets hit some resistance last week, with all but the DJIA and CAC40 indices suffering declines.
