Market Update

Investment markets and key developments over the past week Share markets mostly rose over the last week helped by good earnings, dovish central banks and expectations that the softer than expected US jobs report for April will help keep the Fed accommodative. For the week US shares rose 1.2% to a new record high (but with the tech heavy Nasdaq losing 1.5%), Eurozone shares rose 1.5% to their highest since 2000 and Japanese shares gained 1.9%. Chinese shares bucked the [...]

Investment markets and key developments over the past week Share markets generally fell over the last week, with worries about the resurgence in global coronavirus cases and reports that President Biden will propose a doubling in capital gains tax for high income earners weighing on markets, but strong economic data providing some offset. Despite a Friday surge, US shares slipped 0.1% for the week, Eurozone shares fell 0.4% and Japanese shares lost 2.2%. Chinese shares managed to rise 3.4% from [...]

Investment markets and key developments over the past weekWhile Japanese and Chinese shares fell again over the last week, US and European shares pushed higher helped by good economic data, a strong start to the US earnings reporting season, ongoing dovish comments from the Fed and tame bond yields. Reflecting the strong US lead, strong local data on confidence and jobs and a bit of catch-up Australian shares rose to a new bull market high and are now less than 2% [...]

Investment markets and key developments over the past week While Japanese and Chinese shares fell over the last week, US shares rose to a new record high helped by strong data, stimulus optimism and dovish comments from the Fed and Eurozone shares also rose solidly. Reflecting the strong US lead, RBA dovishness and playing catch up after underperforming the previous week the Australian share market rose sharply to a new bull market high with particularly strong gains in IT, material, [...]

Investment markets and key developments over the past week While US shares fell fractionally over the last week despite a bounce in tech stocks, Eurozone, Japanese and Chinese shares rose. Australian shares also fell fractionally over the last week with strong gains in industrial and material shares being offset by weakness in utilities, energy, retail and health care stocks. Bond yields generally rose slightly but metal, iron ore and oil prices fell with the latter down on forecasts for reduced [...]

Investment markets and key developments over the past week Market sentiment was more cautious this week on concern about the economic reopening from rising COVID-19 cases and vaccine delays. Seasonal impacts affect sharemarkets as well and quarter-end profit taking may also be contributing to sharemarket weakness. US shares on the S&P500 were just negative over the week at -0.1% while the heavier tech NASDAQ index was down by 1.8%. NASDAQ shares are now down by nearly 8% since a peak [...]

Investment markets and key developments over the past week Global sharemarket performance continues to diverge. US shares started the week strongly but higher bond yields following the US Federal Reserve's meeting led US shares down 0.7% over the week for the S&P500 with the heavier tech weighted NASDAQ even weaker (-1.5%). The theme of a rotation out of US to global shares continues to play out with European shares up 0.9% over the week and Japanese shares 1% higher. Chinese [...]

Investment markets and key developments over the past week Share markets rebounded over the last week as bond markets settled down a bit helped by central bank action and as $1.9 trillion in additional US stimulus was signed into law by President Biden. This saw the US share market rise to a record high (albeit the bond sensitive Nasdaq remains 5% down from its high), Eurozone shares rise to their highest since the GFC and strong gains in Japanese shares. [...]

Investment markets and key developments over the past week Share markets saw a bit of a roller coaster ride over the last week initially rallying as fears around rising bond yields briefly eased, then falling after Fed Chair Powell reiterated the Fed's dovishness but failed to signal significant concern or action to deal with rising bond yields only to then see the US share market stage a strong rebound Friday afternoon as strong payrolls encouraged dip buying. This left share [...]

Investment markets and key developments over the past week Global share markets fell over the last week as the selloff in bonds accelerated raising concerns about valuations. Bond yields increased significantly, particularly in the US and Australia and 10 year yields at their highs on Friday were up by around 100 basis points in the US from last year's low and by around 130 basis points in Australia, before settling back a bit helped in Australia by aggressive RBA bond [...]