The Markets (as of market close August 25, 2023)

Last week saw Wall Street generally close with a mixed bag of results. The Nasdaq, the S&P 500, and the Global Dow ended the week higher, while the Dow and the Russell 2000 lost value. Investors tried to digest Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s comments from the annual Jackson Hole Economic Symposium last Friday. Powell […]

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The Markets (as of market close August 18, 2023)

After another week of strong economic data, investors seemed to accept that the Fed may not be done lifting interest rates after all — and that Wall Street might have started celebrating the end of the rate-hike cycle too soon. Each of the benchmark indexes listed here dropped more than 2% by the end of […]

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The Markets (as of market close August 11, 2023)

The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq fell for the second straight week, while the Dow outperformed the benchmark indexes listed here. Stocks have been relatively soft so far in August, which is not out of the ordinary. A slightly hotter-than-expected uptick in producer prices (see below) likely pushed Treasury yields higher, while cooling mega-cap growth […]

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The Markets (as of market close August 4, 2023)

Stocks endured a losing week for the first time since early July. Each of the benchmark indexes listed here lost value, with the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq suffering the steepest weekly declines since March. Investors dealt with the downgrade of the U.S. government’s credit rating and evidence that job growth may be slowing (see […]

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The Markets (as of market close July 28, 2023)

Stocks enjoyed a favorable week of returns, with each of the benchmark indexes listed here posting solid gains. The Dow and the S&P 500 notched their third straight week of gains. Inflation continued to cool in June, with the smallest 12-month rate increase since March 2021 (see below). So far, corporate earnings for the second […]

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The Markets (as of market close July 21, 2023)

Last week saw stocks close generally higher, with only the tech-heavy Nasdaq slipping lower. The Dow extended its winning streak to 10 straight sessions, its longest run since August 2017. Investors, probably anticipating another 25.0 basis-point hike from the Federal Reserve this week, moved from information technology, communication services, and consumer discretionary shares to more […]

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The Markets (as of market close July 14, 2023)

Wall Street enjoyed a positive week of returns, with each of the benchmark indexes posting solid gains, despite a marginal downturn at the end of last week. The financial sector began releasing quarterly updates last Friday as investors focused on the state of the banking industry. A few major banks reported increasing profits in the […]

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The Markets (as of market close July 7, 2023)

Stocks fell for the second straight week, with each of the benchmark indexes losing ground. The Dow led the declines, followed by the Global Dow, the Russell 2000, the S&P 500, and the Nasdaq. Although the employment report for June (see below) showed a moderate decline in the number of new jobs added, wages continued […]

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The Markets (as of market close June 30, 2023)

Stocks moved higher last week as favorable inflation data added to investor hopes that the Federal Reserve would relax its monetary policy, despite Fed Chair Powell’s statement that at least two more rate hikes are in the offing prior to the end of the year. The small caps of the Russell 2000 performed the best, […]

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The Markets (as of market close June 23, 2023)

Recession fears sent stocks lower during the holiday-shortened week. Each of the benchmark indexes listed here closed in the red, with the small caps of the Russell 2000 and the Global Dow losing over 2.50%. The downturn ended a three-week rally for the Dow, a five-week winning streak for the S&P 500, and an eight-week […]

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