Market moves across the month were to the south. Fixed income markets seemed to have a more drastic message on the monitor than that of equities.
Fixed Income: 2-Yr Treas Yield 4.16% | 10-Yr Treas. Yield 4.28%
Bond markets went for a reversal ride in October. After several months of falling rates, we began to see a pullback in the bond market as interest rates rose. The 2-year treasury rose 0.55%, while the 10-year treasury rose 0.54%. The good news is that while rising, the rates did not invert again. The long picture remains intact. We are still in an elevated rate environment with them more likely to drift south rather than north. This move may have been the result of predictions for a potential structure that would mean tariffs. This would reflect a higher inflation potential which would signal a slower path in future rate cuts. Additional good news is that while rates from 6 months on rose, shorter duration rates continued to fall. This bodes well for the normalization of the entire curve.
Equities: Dow Jones 1.34% | S&P 500 0.99% | NASDAQ 0.52%
While it was a down month for equites, the overall move south was not bad for the month. From the top of the market for the S&P 500 (10/18/2024) to the end of the month logged a 2.83%. This proved to be a mild lead up to the beginning of November. The nice part is that while a correction has not materialized, earnings season did, bringing the P/E ratio for the S&P 500 back down to 21.19.
Throughout the month utility stock did well until the last week of the month. A shifting towards Financial and consumer discretionary was underway. Neither of which are surprising given interest rates (favoring financials) and the fact that we are in the fourth quarter… I like to say, ‘Americans spend money they do not have on things they do not need’, AKA: holiday season!
Conclusion
Equities pulled back less than was indicative of the rate move on the bond market. The move there signaled more concern about higher rates for longer than equities chose to price in. The shift in rates seemed like a long-term change in projection, while short rates seemed anchored to FRB actions. The longer rage rates often can be equated to long range GDP expectations. If the view is that we would have stronger forward GDP in 5 years, then we see a stronger 5-year rate.
A Look Ahead…
Market responses in October could have been far more drastic than they were. We should feel fortunate that we got the October that we did. This still leaves a correction (a market fall of 10% to 19%) unattended to. The last one ended 10/27/2023. While stretched P/E’s from over the summer have become more reasonable, that’s been due to strong earnings. Those may continue in the short run, but moving into 2025 those might be harder to come by. It may very well cause a correction in the first half of the year.
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Markets were little changed last week, but the economic calendar was not light. What’s holding markets at bay?
Monday
Markets gained on Monday as the week got underway. The move was broadly bullish. We saw safe haven assets retreat while risk assets gained a bid. This rise on Monday led to record closes for many indices. While bullish, gains were meager as markets await the results of the Federal Reserve Board (FRB) meeting later this week.
Tuesday
The red-hot housing market continues to gain value as home prices rose 18% over the last 12 months. Markets pulled back from their record highs on Tuesday as durable goods orders missed expectations. On a positive note, the CB consumer confidence measure remained high at 129.1. It was expected to fall to 123.9.
Wednesday
Markets struggled to find their north early as they awaited the results of the FRB meeting. Nothing changed after the FRB meeting was over. The S&P 500 was little changed on the day. The Russell 2000 gained 1.5% on the day, however.
Thursday
Investor sentiment was buoyant on Thursday as markets rose. They did so on news that US GDP rose 6.5% for the second quarter. That gives us two consecutive quarters with GDP in excess of 6%! Additionally, new jobless claims fell to 400K.
Friday
Markets gave back the gains from Thursday and ended lower on the week. The S&P 500 lost appx .3% for the week on news that inflation pressures are persisting.
Conclusion
The rise in GDP and inflation creates a recipe (at the surface) of sooner than anticipated rate hikes from the FRB–a decision which would tamp down growth and subsequently, inflation. The FRB is acutely focused on the longevity associated with current inflation, which they view as temporary. Should it persist beyond the next several months, we may see rate increases sooner than desired.
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Always remember that while this is a week in review, this does not trigger or relate to trading activity on your account with Financial Future Services. Broad diversification across several asset classes with a long-term holding strategy is the best strategy in any market environment.
Any and all third-party posts or responses to this blog do not reflect the views of the firm and have not been reviewed by the firm for completeness or accuracy.