In Markets "In a Nutshell"

Markets “In a Nutshell” for October 1, 2019

Investment Week at a Glance

Stocks finished down for the week.  The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.43%, the S&P 500 fell 1.01%, the New York Stock Exchange Composite (2,000 stocks) fell 0.93% and the average investors index (Value Line Index) was down 1.55%.  Foreign stocks (DJ Global ex U.S.) were down 1.18%.  Bond prices were up for the week, pushing the yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury down 8 basis points to end the week at 1.68%.  (Data source: Wall Street Journal)

Stocks Cautiously Fall

U.S. stocks fell around 1% across different indexes in what most would have guessed had been a terrible week for markets if you had just looked at the news cycle. Trade negotiations were supposed to start again last weekend, but were canceled and now are supposed to happen next weekend, creating confusion to the point where it seems markets are numb to the news of talks starting again. European manufacturing data continues to signal a downturn overseas and the Trump administration is now considering limiting U.S. investments in China. The wild card for the coming weeks is the beginning of impeachment proceedings on President Trump, which have no clear effect on markets based on past precedents. After going through all of those storylines, a 1% drop in stocks doesn’t seem so bad, but these stories don’t seem like they’re going away soon. (Barron’s)

U.S. and Japan Reach Trade Agreement

The two countries signed what they both are calling a trade enhancement that will lower Japanese agricultural goods tariffs on U.S. farm products in exchange for a lowering of U.S. industrial goods tariffs on Japanese products. For U.S. farmers, the deal will open up about $7 billion in estimated farm purchases and ease the burden on the industry that was one of the losers of the U.S. being pulled out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership in 2017. Both countries also came to an agreement on digital trade, a growing part of global trade that is hardly regulated in any trade agreements today.  (Wall Street Journal)

Quiz:

 

Quiz

What was the total return for the S&P 500 in the 3rd Quarter that ended last Friday?

a.     -2.3%

b.     0.23%

c.     1.20%

d.     3.58%

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Have a Great Week!

 

 

Answer:

     c.     The total return for the S&P 500 for the 3rd Quarter of 2019 was 1.20%. (Wall Street Journal)