U.S. Stock Market

Week Ended May 27, 2011

Large-cap stocks moved modestly lower, marking the fourth week of losses for the S&P 500, while smaller shares managed modest gains. Trading started on Monday on a decidedly down note, as Wall Street mirrored sharp declines in overseas markets. Speculation increased that Greece would have to default on its debt, and an index of purchasing managers' activity in China fell to its lowest level in 10 months. These worries also fostered a rise in the U.S. dollar, which led in turn to a decline in commodity prices and a corresponding drop in energy and materials shares. Commodity and share prices recovered a bit on Wednesday. Ratings agency Fitch cooled fears about the scope of the European debt crisis by stating that it expected German banks to be able to weather their exposure to Greece. Investors appeared to largely look beyond mixed economic data in the U.S. released later in the week Weekly jobless claims rose more than anticipated, consumer spending rose less than expected, and pending home sales for April declined sharply. A gauge of consumer sentiment was revised upward, however, suggesting that some recent relief in gas prices might help boost spending in coming months. The indexes climbed to end the week, although trading volume was light due to the upcoming holiday weekend.

U.S. Stocks1

Index2

Friday's Close

Week's Change

% Change
Year-to-Date

DJIA

12441.58

-70.46

7.46%

S&P 500

1331.10

-2.17

5.84%

NASDAQ Composite

2796.86

-6.46

5.43%

S&P MidCap 400

990.19

3.36

9.14%

Russell 2000

836.13

6.89

6.48%

This chart is for illustrative purposes only and does not represent the performance of any specific security. Past performance cannot guarantee future results.

1Source of data Reuters, obtained through Yahoo! Finance Closing data as of 4:10 p.m. ET.

2The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the Standard & Poor's 500 Stock Index of blue chip stocks, the Standard & Poor's MidCap 400 Index, and the Russell 2000 Index are unmanaged indexes representing various segments by market capitalization of the U.S. equity markets. The Nasdaq Composite is an unmanaged index representing the companies traded on the Nasdaq stock market and the National Market System.

 

 

 

 

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U.S. Bond Market

Week Ended May 27, 2011

The Commerce Department reiterated its estimate that U.S. gross domestic product grew at an annualized rate of only 1.8% in the first quarter, reflecting lower consumer spending during the period. Analysts had been expecting an upward revision from its initial reading on the economy. A good deal of the blame can be attributed to rising energy and food costs, which have been boosting inflation at its fastest pace in 12 months. Higher costs for gasoline and food have put pressure on household budgets and forced consumers to rein in their spending. Historically, consumer spending has accounted for about 70% of U.S. economic activity. Corporate profits contracted during the first quarter for the first time in more than two years, prompting some economists to state that the overall U.S. economy hit a "soft patch" in the first quarter. Treasury yields fell on the news after slipping a bit lower the week before.

U.S. Treasury Yields1

Maturity

May 27, 2011

May 20, 2011

2-Year

0.48%

0.51%

10-Year

3.07%

3.15%

30-Year

4.24%

4.30%

This table is for illustrative purposes only. Past performance cannot guarantee future results.

1Source of data: Bloomberg.com, as of 4 p.m. ET Friday, May 27, 2011.

 

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International Market

Week Ended May 20, 2011

International Stocks

Foreign stock markets closed lower for the week ending May 20, 2011 with the broad international measure, the MSCI EAFE Index (Europe, Australasia, and Far East), losing -0.75%.

 

Region/Country

Week's Return

% Change Year-to-Date

EAFE

-0.75%

4.62%

Europe ex-U.K.

-0.87%

10.58%

Denmark

-0.79%

7.77%

France

-0.27%

12.60%

Germany

-2.16%

10.55%

Italy

-2.54%

11.77%

Netherlands

-2.45%

7.25%

Spain

-1.47%

11.73%

Sweden

0.45%

11.23%

Switzerland

0.57%

10.80%

United Kingdom

0.38%

6.19%

Japan

-2.55%

-7.73%

AC Far East ex-Japan

-0.43%

3.93%

Hong Kong

-0.36%

1.34%

Korea

-0.28%

8.82%

Malaysia

-0.15%

4.91%

Singapore

0.15%

2.90%

Taiwan

-2.17%

-0.36%

Thailand

-1.86%

6.35%

EM Latin America

0.59%

-4.88%

Brazil

0.58%

-5.51%

Mexico

1.04%

-3.31%

Argentina

0.68%

-12.33%

EM (Emerging Markets)

-0.27%

0.09%

Hungary

-3.95%

17.68%

India

-1.34%

-11.52%

Israel

1.93%

-4.32%

Russia

-1.40%

5.21%

Turkey

-1.32%

-8.05%

 

International Bond Markets

International bond markets in developed countries were lower this week, with the J.P. Morgan Global Government Bond Less U.S. Index losing -0.73%.

 

Region/Country

Week's Return

% Change Year-to-Date

Developed Markets

-0.73%

2.87%

Europe

 

 

Denmark

-0.59%

4.50%

France

-0.31%

5.16%

Germany

-0.17%

4.96%

Italy

-0.66%

7.45%

Spain

-1.50%

7.23%

Sweden

1.04%

9.39%

United Kingdom

0.07%

5.21%

Japan

-1.17%

-0.35%

Emerging Markets

0.44%

3.53%

Argentina

0.79%

-0.99%

Brazil

0.97%

4.71%

Bulgaria

0.13%

2.86%

Russia

0.21%

3.86%

 

International Currency Markets

On the currency front, the U.S. dollar was stronger against the major currencies for the week.

 

Currency

Close
(May 20, 2011)

Week's Return
(U.S. $)

% Change
Year-to-Date (U.S. $)

Japanese yen

81.645

1.08%

0.66%

Euro

1.41531

0.37%

-5.49%

British pound

1.61951

0.08%

-3.44%

1U.S. dollars per national currency unit.

Sources: Foreign stock markets and currency sections are from Rimes Technologies, using MSCI data. International bond markets are from J.P. Morgan.

Note: All returns are in U.S. dollars. All bond indices are J.P. Morgan. All stock indices are Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI).

Equity Indices

EAFE:

MSCI Europe, Australasia, and Far East Index

Europe Ex-U.K.:

MSCI Europe ex-U.K. Index

Far East Ex-Japan:

MSCI AC Far East ex-Japan Index

Latin America:

MSCI Emerging Markets Latin America Index

Emerging Markets:

MSCI Emerging Markets Index

 

Bond Indices

Developed Markets:

J.P. Morgan Global Government Bond Less U.S. Index

Emerging Markets:

J.P. Morgan Emerging Markets Bond Index Plus


All charts are for illustrative purposes only and do not represent the performance of any specific security. Past performance cannot guarantee future results.