Weekly Update

The Weekly Update

Week of August 29th, 2022
By Christopher T. Much, CFP®, AIF®

A comprehensive sell-off on Friday following comments by Fed Chair Jerome Powell drove stocks to losses for the week.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbled 4.22%, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 dropped 4.04%. The Nasdaq Composite index fell 4.44% for the week. The MSCI EAFE index, which tracks developed overseas stock markets, lost 1.10%.

Under Pressure
Stocks dropped on Friday following Powell’s remarks reiterating the Fed’s inflation-fighting resolve. While his comments did not break new ground, markets reacted severely, perhaps on worries that interest rate hikes may continue into next year.

After starting the week sharply lower on renewed rising interest rates and economic slowdown fears, markets staged a modest turnaround beginning mid-week. Stocks rallied on Thursday, sparked by a revised Gross Domestic Product estimate showing the economy’s shrinking less than initially estimated. Thursday’s rally also got a boost from …

The Weekly Update

Week of August 22nd, 2022
By Christopher T. Much, CFP®, AIF®

Stocks tumbled on Friday, sending stocks to a weekly loss after an otherwise quiet August week of trading.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped -0.16%, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 lost 1.21%. The Nasdaq Composite index declined 2.62% for the week. The MSCI EAFE index, which tracks developed overseas stock markets, fell 0.88%.

Summer Rally Hits Pause Button
The market rally that began in mid-June paused last week. Despite the week’s losses, stocks exhibited resiliency in the face of a string of troubling economic news that included flat retail sales, weak housing numbers, an inversion in the yield curve, and tepid economic data out of China.

Nevertheless, stocks tumbled on Friday amid hawkish comments about future rate hikes, rising bond yields, and ahead of the annual meeting of global central bankers in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, in which Fed Chair Jerome …

The Weekly Update

Week of August 15th, 2022
By Christopher T. Much, CFP®, AIF®

An improving inflation outlook buoyed investors’ spirits last week, helping lift stocks to solid gains.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 2.92%, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 rose 3.26%. The Nasdaq Composite index added 3.08% for the week. The MSCI EAFE index, which tracks developed overseas stock markets, gained 2.39%.

Lower Inflation Spurs Buying
Stock prices surged mid-week when the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released a better-than-expected Consumer Price Index (CPI) number, with buying momentum building throughout the trading session.

Gains were significant across the board, with technology and small-cap companies leading the market higher. The mid-week rally sent the S&P 500 to its highest level since May and the Nasdaq to its highest level since April. Bond yields fell on expectations that the Fed’s pressure to hike rates further might ease. After pausing on Thursday, stocks again ripped …

The Weekly Update

Week of August 8th, 2022
By Christopher T. Much, CFP®, AIF®

Stocks turned in a mixed performance last week as investors struggled with headlines suggesting that the Fed was unlikely to soon ease up on its current monetary tightening policy.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.13%, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 rose 0.36%. The Nasdaq Composite index picked up 2.15% for the week. The MSCI EAFE index, which tracks developed overseas stock markets, gained 0.23%.

Showing Resilience
Ahead of Friday’s employment report, stocks were generally higher, highlighted by a Wednesday rally triggered by fresh earnings surprises and a better-than-expected economic report. The rally was especially notable because it occurred when multiple Fed officials said that the fight against inflation hadn’t ended, perhaps throwing cold water on the idea that the Fed might pivot due to weakening economic activity and the prospect of cooling inflation.

Aside from this single day of …

The Weekly Update

Week of August 1st, 2022
By Christopher T. Much, CFP®, AIF®

Undaunted by another Fed rate hike and news of a contracting economy, the stock market rallied last week on better-than-expected corporate earnings.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average increased 2.97%, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 picked up 4.26%. The Nasdaq Composite index gained 4.70% for the week. The MSCI EAFE index, which tracks developed overseas stock markets, rose 0.95%.

Stocks Rally on Earnings
It was an inauspicious start to the week after a big-box retailer missed earnings and reduced forward guidance on Tuesday, sparking a broad market retreat.

But sentiment improved following mega-cap technology company earnings that proved better than expected. Enthusiasm gathered steam in the wake of the Fed’s 0.75% rate hike, boosted by Fed Chair Powell’s comments following Wednesday’s Federal Open Market Committee meeting. Powell indicated that it might become appropriate to slow the pace of future hikes, and …

The Weekly Update

Week of July 25th, 2022
By Christopher T. Much, CFP®, AIF®

Stocks rallied last week as investor spirits lifted thanks to a better-than-expected start to the second-quarter earnings season.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 1.95%, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 added 2.55%. The Nasdaq Composite index jumped 3.33% for the week. The MSCI EAFE index, which tracks developed overseas stock markets, advanced 3.54%.

Earnings Propel Stocks
Earnings season kicked off last week, with major banks reporting second-quarter results. While their results were mixed, they appeared to indicate that consumers and businesses remained reasonably healthy–a perspective that helped erase some negative sentiment overhanging the market.

As the week progressed, stocks gained momentum as earnings results poured in from different sectors of the economy, showing that businesses were navigating higher inflation and slowing growth better than investors feared. Technology and other gloomier sectors were among the market’s best performers for the week. …

The Weekly Update

Week of July 18th, 2022
By Christopher T. Much, CFP®, AIF®

A record-high inflation report, the prospects of a more aggressive Fed, and growing recession fears sent stocks lower – though losses were pared by a Friday rally.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.16%, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 lost 0.93%. The Nasdaq Composite index dropped 1.57% for the week. The MSCI EAFE index, which tracks developed overseas stock markets, lost 3.49%.

Stocks Slide
As the week opened, recession fears intensified with reports of renewed Covid-related lockdowns in China. Also, the U.S. dollar continued to climb, reflecting global economic weakness.

June’s consumer price index report showed price increases accelerating. Year-over-Year prices jumped 9.1%, the fastest pace in over 40 years. Speculation grew that the Federal Reserve might contemplate a 100-basis point increase in short-term rates later this month, rather than the 75-basis point hike it earlier signaled. The market rebounded …

The Weekly Update

Week of July 11th, 2022
By Christopher T. Much, CFP®, AIF®

In a holiday-shortened trading week, stocks rallied despite mixed economic data and vacillating energy prices and bond yields.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average increased 0.77%, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 rose 1.94%. The Nasdaq Composite index picked up 4.56% for the week. The MSCI EAFE index, which tracks developed overseas stock markets, edged 0.46% higher.

Stocks Move Higher
In advance of Friday’s much-anticipated employment report, stocks enjoyed successive daily gains despite ongoing concerns about a recession. Recession fears were supported by an inversion in the yield curve and updated second-quarter Gross Domestic Product projections indicating the economy is ready to contract.

Technology shares were the week’s big winners as investors appear to have turned to companies with earnings growth potential during a weakening economic environment. Stocks bounced along the flatline following the strong jobs report on Friday to close out …

The Weekly Update

Week of July 5th, 2022
By Christopher T. Much, CFP®, AIF®

After the S&P 500 posted its worst first half of the year since 1970, U.S. stock futures are starting the new month and new quarter under pressure.

All three major U.S. stock indexes finished the month and the second quarter in negative territory last week. For the month, the S&P 500 fell 8.4%, the Nasdaq declined 8.7%, and the Dow lost 6.7%.

It was the largest first-half percentage drop ever for the Nasdaq, while the Dow plunged the most since 1962. For the first half of 2022, the S&P 500 fell 20.6%, the Nasdaq lost 29.5%, and the Dow declined 15.3%. All three indexes posted their second straight quarterly declines. The last time that happened was in 2015 for the S&P 500 and the Dow, and 2016 for the Nasdaq. For the quarter, the S&P 500 declined 16.4%, the …

The Weekly Update

Week of June 27th, 2022
By Christopher T. Much, CFP®, AIF®

Prospects of cooling inflation powered a rally in stock prices last week despite growing recession concerns.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 5.39%, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 climbed 6.45%. The Nasdaq Composite index rose 7.49% for the week. The MSCI EAFE index, which tracks developed overseas stock markets, edged 0.78% higher.

Stocks Bounce
Declining energy and food prices and falling bond yields signaled a potentially improving inflation outlook, buoying investor sentiment. The rally in stocks was most powerful on the first and final trading days of a holiday-shortened week. Stocks turned a bit choppy mid-week as investors digested Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s Senate appearance but resumed their momentum on Thursday and rallied Friday as rate-hike expectations eased.

Though the weekly gain was a welcome respite from the market’s downward trend, declining bond yields and falling food and energy prices …