Week Ended November 20, 2009
Stocks began on a high note but then gave back their gains as the week ended. On Monday, investors were encouraged by a speech given by Ben Bernanke, in which the Fed chairman indicated that monetary policy would remain accommodative for some time given the weak pace of the recovery. News of good gains in retail sales in October may have also boosted sentiment. The major indexes headed back lower on Thursday, however, seemingly in response to a brokerage's negative forecast for the semiconductor industry; the technology-oriented Nasdaq was hit particularly hard. On Friday, the head of the European Central Bank appeared to contradict Bernanke's earlier assurances and suggested that credit support measures might have to be pulled back, which weighed further on share prices. Many speculated that stock prices were also weighed down by worries that the rally since March had gotten ahead of real improvement in the outlook for corporate earnings.
| U.S. Stocks1 | |||
| Index2 | Friday’s Close | Week’s Change | % Change Year-to-Date |
| DJIA | 10318.16 | 47.69 | 17.57% |
| S&P 500 | 1091.38 | -2.10 | 20.83% |
| NASDAQ Composite | 2146.04 | -21.84 | 36.08% |
| S&P MidCap 400 | 687.54 | -10.72 | 27.73% |
| Russell 2000 | 584.53 | -0.35 | 17.03% |
1Source of data Reuters, obtained through Yahoo! Finance Closing data as of 4:10 p.m. ET.
2The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the Standard & Poor’s 500 Stock Index of blue chip stocks, the Standard & Poor’s MidCap 400 Index, and the Russell 2000 Index are unmanaged indexes representing various segments by market capitalization of the U.S. equity markets. The Nasdaq Composite is an unmanaged index representing the companies traded on the Nasdaq stock market and the National Market System.
Week Ended November 20, 2009
The U.S. dollar strengthened somewhat during the week as investors became more risk averse and parked their funds in safer assets, including short-term Treasury securities, driving the two-year yield to its lowest level of the year. Still, the greenback has a long way to go to regain the level it occupied versus the euro a few years back. At the same time, the price of oil slipped further below the $80 per barrel mark it recently hit, ending the week around $76. Gold, which crossed the $1,000 per ounce threshold several weeks ago, continued its climb well above $1,100 as global investor demand for the glittering metal remained strong-perhaps as a hedge against higher inflation next year. Treasury yields declined across all maturities, although the drop-off was steeper for short-term securities.
| U.S. Treasury Yields1 | ||
| Maturity | November 20, 2009 | November 13, 2009 |
| 2-Year | 0.72% | 0.81% |
| 10-Year | 3.36% | 3.42% |
| 30-Year | 4.29% | 4.35% |
This table is for illustrative purposes only. Past performance cannot guarantee future results.
Week Ended November 13, 2009
Foreign stock markets closed higher for the week ending November 13, 2009 with the broad international measure, the MSCI EAFE Index (Europe, Australasia, and Far East), gaining 2.38%.
| Region/Country | Week’s Return | % Change Year-to-Date |
| EAFE | 2.38% | 32.82% |
| Europe ex-U.K. | 2.75% | 35.50% |
| Denmark | 0.94% | 42.03% |
| France | 2.87% | 33.35% |
| Germany | 3.19% | 25.66% |
| Italy | 3.14% | 32.77% |
| Netherlands | 3.20% | 42.67% |
| Spain | 3.36% | 49.67% |
| Sweden | 5.42% | 76.57% |
| Switzerland | 1.19% | 25.43% |
| United Kingdom | 3.52% | 44.54% |
| Japan | -0.33% | 4.59% |
| AC Far East ex-Japan | 2.36% | 64.66% |
| Hong Kong | 1.24% | 59.14% |
| Korea | 0.69% | 60.48% |
| Malaysia | 1.62% | 53.70% |
| Singapore | 3.40% | 64.34% |
| Taiwan | 3.78% | 68.73% |
| Thailand | -0.26% | 67.29% |
| EM Latin America | 1.60% | 97.57% |
| Brazil | 0.67% | 121.84% |
| Mexico | 4.58% | 49.99% |
| Argentina | -1.82% | 67.56% |
| EM (Emerging Markets) | 2.81% | 73.86% |
| Hungary | 8.06% | 85.40% |
| India | 5.84% | 95.52% |
| Israel | 2.92% | 43.44% |
| Russia | 5.12% | 106.16% |
| Turkey | 2.57% | 83.44% |
International bond markets in developed countries were higher this week, with the J.P. Morgan Global Government Bond Less U.S. Index gaining 0.67%.
| Region/Country | Week’s Return | % Change Year-to-Date |
| Developed Markets | 0.67% | 7.34% |
| Europe | ||
| Denmark | 0.66% | 8.49% |
| France | 0.44% | 9.75% |
| Germany | 0.40% | 8.83% |
| Italy | 0.53% | 15.50% |
| Spain | 0.42% | 11.50% |
| Sweden | 2.21% | 13.48% |
| United Kingdom | 1.02% | 15.51% |
| Japan | 0.69% | 1.39% |
| Emerging Markets | 1.20% | 25.68% |
| Argentina | 0.65% | 121.59% |
| Brazil | 1.16% | 11.40% |
| Bulgaria | 0.12% | 27.29% |
| Russia | 1.15% | 36.71% |
On the currency front, the U.S. dollar was weaker against the major currencies for the week.
| Currency | Close (November 13, 2009) |
Week’s Return (U.S. $) |
% Change Year-to-Date (U.S. $) |
| Japanese yen | 89.655 | -0.21% | -1.11% |
| Euro | 1.48881 | -0.11% | -7.10% |
| British pound | 1.66751 | -0.39% | -15.98% |
Sources: Foreign stock markets and currency sections are from Rimes Technologies, using MSCI data. International bond markets are from J.P. Morgan.
Note: All returns are in U.S. dollars. All bond indices are J.P. Morgan. All stock indices are Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI).
| Equity Indices | |
| EAFE: | MSCI Europe, Australasia, and Far East Index |
| Europe Ex-U.K.: | MSCI Europe ex-U.K. Index |
| Far East Ex-Japan: | MSCI AC Far East ex-Japan Index |
| Latin America: | MSCI Emerging Markets Latin America Index |
| Emerging Markets: | MSCI Emerging Markets Index |
| Bond Indices | |
| Developed Markets: | J.P. Morgan Global Government Bond Less U.S. Index |
| Emerging Markets: | J.P. Morgan Emerging Markets Bond Index Plus |
All charts are for illustrative purposes only and do not represent the performance of any specific security. Past performance cannot guarantee future results.
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