Market Update

Investment markets and key developments The swerve in market attention from recession risks and volatility just a few weeks ago back to hopes for a soft landing shows how fast and fickle financial markets can be! The focus was on central bank communication this week, in anticipation of comments from Fed Chair Powell at the Jackson Hole Economic Symposium at the end of the week. Economic data was mostly okay which helped to lift equities, with most major equity indices up [...]

Investment markets and key developments Share markets continued their recovery over the last week helped along by expectations that “Goldilocks” conditions will prevail, with a further slowing in US inflation leaving the Fed on track to cut rates and reasonable economic data helping allay recession fears for now. US shares rose 3.9% for the week making it their strongest week for the year, Eurozone shares rose 3.1% and Japanese shares gained 8.7%. Chinese shares rose 0.4% supported by hopes for more [...]

Investment markets and key developments Following a bad start to the week on worries about a US recession made worse by investors rushing to unwind risky positions in response including Yen carry trades, shares then clawed back their losses helped by better-than-expected US economic data and comments from the Bank of Japan that it will not raise rates in “unstable markets.” This left Eurozone shares up 0.6% for the week, US shares flat (or -0.04% to be precise), but Japanese shares [...]

Investment markets and key developments Risk off with shares down again, bond yields down, commodity prices down and the $A down. Shares got a boost mid-week from firming expectations for Fed rate cuts, but this gave way again to renewed concerns about weaker economic growth after weak US jobs data and concerns that we have seen the best for tech stocks as tech earnings results have been mixed. For the week US shares fell 2.1%, Eurozone shares fell 4.2%, Japanese shares [...]

Investment markets and key developments Global share markets mostly fell over the last week on the back of softer than hoped for big tech earnings, concerns about growth and political uncertainty in the US. US shares got a boost on Friday from better inflation data but fell 0.8% for the week with weakness remaining concentrated in IT shares as a rotation away from tech continues to support small caps with the Russell 2000 up 3.5% for the week and 10.4% this [...]

Investment markets and key developments US equities managed to end the week 1.3% higher despite hawkish comments from Fed Chair Powell and other Fed members which led to an increase in bond yields and Moody’s decision on Friday to change the US credit rating to “negative” from stable which increases the risk of a downgrade to their Aaa credit rating. Bond yields drifted higher late into the week with the US 10-year yield back up above 4.6% (although this is [...]

Investment markets and key developments Global share markets rebounded over the last week from oversold levels on the back of increasing optimism that the Fed has finished raising rates helped by soft US jobs data, strong US earnings results and the war in Israel being relatively contained so far. For the week US shares rose 5.9%, Eurozone shares rose 4.3%, Japanese shares rose 3.1% and Chinese shares gained 0.6%. The global rebound and falling bond yields saw the Australian share market [...]

Investment markets and key developments Most global share markets fell again over the last week on the back of ongoing worries about high bond yields, the war in Israel and some mixed US earnings results. For the week US shares fell 2.5%, Eurozone shares fell 0.3% and Japanese shares lost 0.9%. However, Chinese shares rose 1.5% helped by the announcement of policy stimulus. The poor global lead along with increased expectations for another rate rise following hawkish RBA comments and higher [...]

Investment markets and key developments Global share markets were mixed over the last week. US shares rose as Fed officials sounded less hawkish before higher than expected inflation and nervousness over the war in Israel weighed later in the week, leaving them up 0.5% for the week as a whole. Japanese shares also gained 4.3% but Eurozone shares fell 0.2% and Chinese shares fell 0.7%. The positive global lead along with talk of more stimulus in China saw Australian shares rise [...]

Investment markets and key developmentsGlobal share markets were mixed over the last week. US shares initially fell as higher bond yields continued to pressure valuations not helped by political uncertainty with the replacement of the House Speaker, but then rebounded from technical support on Friday helped by a “goldilocks” (not too strong, not too weak) interpretation of the latest jobs data. This saw US shares rise 0.5% for the week. Eurozone shares fell 1.2% for the week and Japanese shares fell 2.7%. [...]