Advances and Declines

March 7, 2022

  Russia’s continued advance into Ukraine caused a market decline for the week, despite a strong employment report for February and comments from Fed Chair Jerome Powell that he supports a 0.25% increase in the Fed funds rate this month rather than 0.50%. The S&P 500 Index ended the week -1.2%, the Dow was -1.2%, …

Spoils of War

February 28, 2022

  Downward market pressure early in the week reversed once the Russian invasion of Ukraine began. Markets began climbing the Wall of Worry we mentioned last week. The situation in Ukraine may continue to dominate headlines this week, but the U.S. economy comes back centerstage with the February Employment Report on Friday. President Biden is …

Wall of Worry

February 21, 2022

  Concern over tensions between Russia-Ukraine, and impact of inflation and Fed actions in the U.S. have built a wall of worry year-to-date that the equity markets have yet to be able to climb. The S&P 500 Index ended the week -1.5%, the Dow was -1.8%, and the NASDAQ was -1.7%. The U.S. 10-year Treasury …

Where is the Love?

February 14, 2022

  Geopolitical tension over Russia-Ukraine knocked back the equity markets on Friday afternoon. This brought a two-week win streak to an end for the major averages. The S&P 500 Index ended the week – 1.8%, the Dow was -1.0%, and the NASDAQ was -3.0%. The U.S. 10-year Treasury bond yield increased to 1.918% at Friday’s …

Job Growth Surprises

February 7, 2022

  The reaction to multiple earnings reports this past week was a rollercoaster. Overall, the markets posted positive back-to-back weeks due to more upside than downside earnings reports and a better-than-expected January employment report. The S&P 500 Index ended the week +1.6%, the Dow was +1.1%, and the NASDAQ was +1.7%. The U.S. 10-year Treasury …

Earnings Buoy Markets

January 31, 2022

  Buoyed by several strong corporate earnings reports, the major U.S. equity indices all closed the week higher for the first time this year. The S&P 500 Index ended the week +0.8%, the Dow was +1.3%, and the NASDAQ was +0.1%. The U.S. 10-year Treasury bond yield increased to 1.778% at Friday’s close versus 1.771% …

Still Struggling

January 24, 2022

  The early year market retreat extended to a third week. The S&P 500 Index ended the week -3.9%, the Dow was -3.3%, and the NASDAQ was -4.9%. The U.S. 10-year Treasury bond yield decreased to 1.771% at Friday’s close versus 1.793% the previous week. Some of the downturn can be attributed to the high …

Keeping Resolutions

January 18, 2022

  January 17th is deemed Quit Day, or Ditch New Years’ Resolution Day, because it is typically the day most people have already left behind their resolutions. People typically do this because it is hard to maintain their discipline. While the first two weeks of January have been tough in the financial markets as well, …

Fast Forward

January 10, 2022

  The equity markets struggled the first week of the new year after the minutes from the December Federal Reserve meeting, which were released this past Wednesday, indicated the Fed could potentially accelerate its actions to slow bond buying, raise short-term rates, and shrink its balance sheet. The news sent equities down for the week …

Setting the Stage

January 3, 2022

  The U.S. equity markets closed out the year with a positive week. The S&P 500 Index was higher for the week by +0.9%, the Dow was +1.1%, and the NASDAQ was +0.1%. All three major U.S. indices closed the year with solid double-digit gains. Two particular asset class winners this year were oil and …