Week Ended January 22, 2010
Stocks endured a difficult four days of trading, with the
S&P 500 experiencing its worst week since late October. The
holiday-shortened trading week began on an up note, as investors appeared to
welcome Citigroup’s report of declining losses in consumer loans, and health
care stocks got a boost from reduced prospects for regulatory reform resulting
from the Massachusetts Senate race. Stocks fell sharply on Wednesday and Thursday,
however, in response to concerns that China and other nations might raise
interest rates and take other steps to slow growth and cool inflationary
pressures. Bank shares came under particular pressure on Thursday when
President Obama unveiled his proposal to limit the size of banks and regulate
the kinds of activities, such as stock trading, they could engage in if also
choosing to operate under a government guarantee. On Friday, stocks experienced
another leg lower in response to earnings results from several prominent
companies that, while generally positive, did not match the expectations of
many investors.
|
U.S.
Stocks1
|
|
Index2
|
Friday’s
Close
|
Week’s
Change
|
%
Change
Year-to-Date
|
|
DJIA
|
10172.98
|
-436.67
|
-2.45%
|
|
S&P
500
|
1091.76
|
-44.27
|
-2.09%
|
|
NASDAQ
Composite
|
2205.29
|
-82.70
|
-2.81%
|
|
S&P
MidCap 400
|
721.65
|
-21.46
|
-0.69%
|
|
Russell
2000
|
617.88
|
-19.89
|
-2.55%
|
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.
U.S. Bond Market
Week Ended January
22, 2010
New claims for unemployment
insurance rose unexpectedly last week. At the same time, regional manufacturing
activity fell, indicating that the long-awaited economic rebound may be hitting
a rough patch. Treasury bonds benefited as a result, with prices rising and
yields falling during the week (prices and yields move counter to each other).
The increase in applications for unemployment benefits marked the third
consecutive week that claims have risen. Most analysts had been expecting a
decline. The pullback in factory activity in the Mid-Atlantic region marked a
three-month low but does not signal a return to economic stagnation. Economists
agree that the U.S. economy grew at an annualized rate of between 4% and 5% in
the fourth quarter of 2009. The new data do suggest, however, that the rate of
growth could be slowing in the first quarter of 2010. Companies remain
reluctant to expand capacity and step up their hiring, which puts ongoing
pressure on the labor market.
|
U.S.
Treasury Yields1
|
|
Maturity
|
January
22, 2010
|
January
15, 2010
|
|
2-Year
|
0.78%
|
0.87%
|
|
10-Year
|
3.58%
|
3.68%
|
|
30-Year
|
4.51%
|
4.58%
|
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, January 22, 2010.
Week
Ended January 8, 2010
International Stocks
Foreign stock markets closed higher
for the week ending January 08, 2010 with the broad international measure, the
MSCI EAFE Index (Europe, Australasia, and Far East), gaining 2.34%.
|
|
|
Region/Country
|
Week’s
Return
|
%
Change Year-to-Date
|
|
EAFE
|
2.34%
|
2.34%
|
|
Europe ex-U.K.
|
2.13%
|
2.13%
|
|
Denmark
|
4.55%
|
4.55%
|
|
France
|
2.62%
|
2.62%
|
|
Germany
|
1.33%
|
1.33%
|
|
Italy
|
2.30%
|
2.30%
|
|
Netherlands
|
1.72%
|
1.72%
|
|
Spain
|
1.60%
|
1.60%
|
|
Sweden
|
2.60%
|
2.60%
|
|
Switzerland
|
1.59%
|
1.59%
|
|
United
Kingdom
|
1.08%
|
1.08%
|
|
Japan
|
3.89%
|
3.89%
|
|
AC
Far East ex-Japan
|
2.43%
|
2.43%
|
|
Hong Kong
|
2.46%
|
2.46%
|
|
Korea
|
3.20%
|
3.20%
|
|
Malaysia
|
3.18%
|
3.18%
|
|
Singapore
|
1.04%
|
1.04%
|
|
Taiwan
|
1.67%
|
1.67%
|
|
Thailand
|
1.46%
|
1.46%
|
|
EM
Latin America
|
3.53%
|
3.53%
|
|
Brazil
|
2.93%
|
2.93%
|
|
Mexico
|
4.07%
|
4.07%
|
|
Argentina
|
3.79%
|
3.79%
|
|
EM
(Emerging Markets)
|
2.74%
|
2.74%
|
|
Hungary
|
6.20%
|
6.20%
|
|
India
|
2.53%
|
2.53%
|
|
Israel
|
3.28%
|
3.28%
|
|
Russia
|
2.22%
|
2.22%
|
|
Turkey
|
5.37%
|
5.37%
|
Back to Top
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 -0.12%.
|
|
|
Region/Country
|
Week’s
Return
|
%
Change Year-to-Date
|
|
Developed
Markets
|
-0.12%
|
-0.12%
|
|
Europe
|
|
|
|
Denmark
|
0.21%
|
0.21%
|
|
France
|
0.08%
|
0.08%
|
|
Germany
|
0.10%
|
0.10%
|
|
Italy
|
0.18%
|
0.18%
|
|
Spain
|
0.09%
|
0.09%
|
|
Sweden
|
0.07%
|
0.07%
|
|
United
Kingdom
|
-1.68%
|
-1.68%
|
|
Japan
|
-0.21%
|
-0.21%
|
|
Emerging
Markets
|
0.79%
|
0.79%
|
|
Argentina
|
-2.01%
|
-2.01%
|
|
Brazil
|
0.30%
|
0.30%
|
|
Bulgaria
|
0.34%
|
0.34%
|
|
Russia
|
1.33%
|
1.33%
|
Back to Top
International Currency Markets
On the currency front, the U.S. dollar
was stronger against the major currencies for the week.
|
|
|
Currency
|
Close
(January 8, 2010)
|
Week’s
Return
(U.S. $)
|
%
Change
Year-to-Date (U.S. $)
|
|
Japanese
yen
|
92.950
|
-0.16%
|
-0.16%
|
|
Euro
|
1.43261
|
0.15%
|
0.15%
|
|
British
pound
|
1.59621
|
1.16%
|
1.16%
|
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.
Back to Top