Category: Newsletter

It was a relatively quiet week in the financial markets, with most indices finishing close to where they started. French President Macron dissolved the National Assembly after a far-right victory in the EU parliament elections. The Swiss National Bank cut interest rates, while the Japanese yen weakened against the US dollar. 

US stocks concluded the last trading day of May on a high note, marking the sixth positive month in the last seven for all three major indexes. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite posted their best May performances since 2003, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average saw its best May since 2020.

Last week, the S&P 500 narrowly extended its five-week winning streak, registering a +0.03% gain, while the Nasdaq surged +1.4%; however, the Dow fell -2.3%. In the coming week, bond markets face a busy slate of Treasury auctions worth $183B and market focus shifts to inflation data due on 31st May

Wall Street witnessed a record-breaking week, primarily driven by the latest consumer inflation data. The positive sentiment pushed the benchmark S&P 500 above the 5,300-point level for the first time ever.

The S&P 500 and Treasuries notched their first in-tandem weekly gain in a month, buoyed by constructive pronouncements from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell and softer employment data.

Please find enclosed our weekly newsletter.

Please find enclosed our newsletter for the week ended 29th March.

Please find enclosed our newsletter for the week ended 22nd March.

Please find enclosed our newsletter for the week ended 15th March.

Despite data suggesting lukewarm progress towards the Federal Reserve’s 2% inflation target, US financial markets are still held up strongly by the prospects for AI. Both companies that will provide critical inputs for the industry, as well as those expected to benefit from it the most, are being chased by investors.

How long before this levels off is not easy to forecast, but difficult to deny that valuations are looking excessively optimistic.

Last week markets were all about the spectacular performance of Nvidia which lifted the entire sector, US markets and even the global markets. Strong data from the US suggests that interest rate cuts may be pushed somewhat into the future than what the market has currently priced in.