This week was a bad one for the US capital markets, and the global equity markets at large. All major indicies retreated in a big way for the week – the S&P 500 was down -4.1%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down -4.2%, and the Russell 2000 was down -5.2%. Large cap stocks performed slightly better than small and mid-cap stocks. Value stocks and growth stocks performed about the same for the week.
No sector was spared from the deep red week, but materials and industrials performed particularly poorly at -6%+ for the week. Utilities lost less than most other sectors at -1.3%. Gold was up +1.2% for the week, closing at $1,218 per ounce. Silver was flat for the week, closing at $14.60 per ounce. Not surprisingly, the VIX (fear index) shot to the moon, posting a weekly gain of +44%. Oil struggled this week, and was down -3.8%, closing at $71.51 per barrel (West Texas Intermediate).
The economic and political news affecting the markets this week was fairly nonexistent. The economic indicators that came out point towards a healthy US economy, however, the run on the markets this week appears to be due the combination of a few factors – fear that interest rates are rising too quickly, extreme political distention especially as it relates to the new Supreme Court Justice, and continued fallout from trade wars with China.
Cryptocurrencies had a bad week as well. Bitcoin fell -5.0%, currently at $6,220. Steem retreated -6.7% for the week, currently at $0.84. EOS fell -8.7% for the week, and is currently at $5.25.
Overall, this week was a tough one, and much of the 2018 gains were wiped away, however, the US economy remains healthy and the continued effect of tax reform looks to be ready to help boost earnings, allowing for the potential of positive market gains.
Good luck!
Brian