Markets “In a Nutshell” for June 28, 2021
Investment Week at a Glance
Stocks finished higher for the week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 3.40%, the S&P 500 was up 2.70%, and the NASDAQ rose 2.40%. Foreign stocks (MSCI EAFE) were up as well, rising 1.00%. Bond prices were down for the week, with the 10-year U.S. Treasury ending the week at 1.53%. (Data source: Wall Street Journal)
Markets Move Higher
Despite the slight choppiness in markets two weeks ago, stocks were able to rebound nicely this past week. The market had been moving sideways for about two months prior but this past week the S&P was able to reach another all-time high. This is already the 33rd time this year that the S&P has made a new all-time high. This shows the belief that the economy will continue to rebound in the near future and economic conditions will still remain favorable. Although the market seems to keep pushing higher some believe a brief pullback is needed, but there was also a thought we needed one earlier this year and the market has continued to move higher since then.
Bipartisan Infrastructure Deal Reached
As talks of an infrastructure deal have been going on for weeks now, there has been a deal reached said President Biden. The number that was agreed upon was $579 billion of new spending, far from the original number the Biden administration proposed. This agreement focuses more on traditional infrastructure such as roads, bridges, water, and broadband. A positive for markets in this bill is that an increase in taxes is not included however this could still be on the table in future talks but as of now seems they would not be as aggressive as originally proposed. Instead of higher taxes this bill will be funded by repurposing unused pandemic relief funds, stricter IRS tax collection, and selling oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. Although President Biden announced a deal, this package is far from becoming final as there is still much disagreement on the deal within the Democrat party, many of whom were looking for a much larger deal.
Quiz:
Quiz
What is the record for new all-time highs for the S&P 500 in a single calendar year? (Scroll Down for Answer)
Answer below.
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Answer:
c. 77 times, this has happened twice in the history of the S&P 500 in 1954 and 1995, we are currently on pace for about 67 times this year.