Week
Ended October 7, 2011
Markets
moved higher as concerns about the European debt crisis ebbed once again and
data suggested the U.S. economic recovery, while hardly robust, was proving
more resilient than many had expected. The major indexes reached their lows for
the year early at the start of the week as investors reacted to news over the
weekend from Greece that it would not meet its 2011 deficit targets. Bank
stocks were particularly hard hit, and the S&P 500 retreated into bear
territory—commonly defined as a 20% or greater
drop from the index's highs—on Tuesday morning. Markets rebounded
late Tuesday, however, as investors appeared to be encouraged by reports that
European officials were considering measures to bolster the Continent's banking
system. Better-than-expected U.S. economic data provided a tailwind for market
gains later in the week. On Wednesday, the private payrolls processing firm ADP
reported that its tally of private payrolls had increased by 91,000 in
September, which raised hopes for the Labor Department's more comprehensive
report on Friday. Indeed, the government's data showed that private employment
increased by 137,000 in the month. Previous months' figures were also revised
higher, but the unemployment rate remained at an elevated 9.1%. Investors were
further encouraged by data showing modest expansion in the manufacturing and
service sectors, and preliminary retail sales data for September showed many
national chain stores reporting good sales increases over last year.
U.S. Stocks1 |
|||
Index2 |
Friday's Close |
Week's Change |
% Change |
DJIA |
11103.12 |
189.74 |
-4.10% |
S&P 500 |
1155.46 |
24.04 |
-8.12% |
NASDAQ Composite |
2479.35 |
63.95 |
-6.54% |
S&P MidCap 400 |
799.08 |
17.77 |
-11.92% |
Russell 2000 |
655.93 |
11.78 |
-16.47% |
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.
____________
Week
Ended October 7, 2011
Treasury
yields ended the week higher. Better-than-expected data caused investors to
reevaluate long-term U.S. economic and inflation prospects even as Federal
Reserve officials restated their concerns about the fragility of the recovery.
On Tuesday, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke told Congress that the recovery was
"close to faltering" and pledged that the central bank was willing to
take further action to stimulate growth if needed. Surprisingly favorable reports
later in the week on the labor market, retail sales, and service sector
activity boosted investor sentiment and helped take the spotlight off
Bernanke's comments. On Friday, Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta president
Dennis Lockhart noted that he would support additional Fed action if conditions
warranted, but he noted that the economy was "not dramatically
weakening," and rather "sort of bumping along." The week saw
heightened attention to stresses in the European banking system. Although debt
concerns appeared to intensify in Greece, Italy, and Spain, investors were
encouraged by a commitment from the European Central Bank to provide assistance
to eurozone banks facing losses from sovereign debt holdings.
U.S. Treasury Yields1 |
||
Maturity |
October 7, 2011 |
September 30, 2011 |
2-Year |
0.28% |
0.25% |
10-Year |
2.06% |
1.90% |
30-Year |
3.00% |
2.90% |
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, October
7, 2011.
___________
International Stocks
Foreign stock markets closed higher for
the week ending September 30, 2011 with the broad international measure, the MSCI
EAFE Index (Europe, Australasia, and Far East), gaining 2.84%.
|
||
Region/Country |
Week's Return |
% Change Year-to-Date |
EAFE |
2.84% |
-14.62% |
Europe ex-U.K. |
4.77% |
-17.37% |
Denmark |
2.56% |
-22.16% |
France |
4.85% |
-18.29% |
Germany |
4.87% |
-20.58% |
Italy |
7.66% |
-22.97% |
Netherlands |
6.09% |
-17.19% |
Spain |
6.44% |
-9.48% |
Sweden |
4.48% |
-21.99% |
Switzerland |
3.69% |
-9.78% |
United Kingdom |
2.14% |
-10.66% |
Japan |
1.68% |
-10.75% |
AC Far East ex-Japan |
1.29% |
-18.84% |
Hong Kong |
-3.66% |
-20.99% |
Korea |
5.49% |
-16.69% |
Malaysia |
1.68% |
-10.38% |
Singapore |
-1.69% |
-17.06% |
Taiwan |
2.84% |
-19.85% |
Thailand |
-4.32% |
-12.45% |
EM Latin America |
1.20% |
-25.69% |
Brazil |
0.93% |
-28.02% |
Mexico |
2.50% |
-19.69% |
Argentina |
-3.48% |
-37.28% |
EM (Emerging Markets) |
2.23% |
-21.66% |
Hungary |
4.76% |
-32.04% |
India |
2.52% |
-26.73% |
Israel |
-0.63% |
-30.90% |
Russia |
1.78% |
-24.01% |
Turkey |
5.53% |
-23.07% |
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 -1.05%.
|
||
Region/Country |
Week's Return |
% Change Year-to-Date |
Developed Markets |
-1.05% |
6.16% |
Europe |
|
|
Denmark |
-1.67% |
8.99% |
France |
-1.14% |
6.18% |
Germany |
-1.78% |
7.78% |
Italy |
-0.45% |
-2.81% |
Spain |
-0.17% |
5.26% |
Sweden |
-0.49% |
8.84% |
United Kingdom |
0.56% |
10.16% |
Japan |
-1.35% |
7.08% |
Emerging Markets |
0.27% |
3.75% |
Argentina |
-1.26% |
-19.62% |
Brazil |
-0.38% |
7.74% |
Bulgaria |
-0.08% |
0.74% |
Russia |
-0.61% |
1.45% |
International Currency Markets
On the currency front, the U.S. dollar
was stronger against the major currencies for the week.
|
|||
Currency |
Close |
Week's Return |
% Change |
Japanese yen |
77.080 |
1.06% |
-5.22% |
Euro |
1.34171 |
0.75% |
-0.01% |
British pound |
1.55781 |
-0.91% |
0.50% |
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.