U.S. Performance Dashboard – December 2023
After a dismal 2022, the market recovered with a vengeance in 2023. Closing out the year with nine consecutive weeks of gains, the S&P 500® finished with an impressive 26% return for the year. The relentless strength of the Magnificent Seven powered those gains throughout, pushing the mega-cap S&P 500 Top 50 up a stonking 38%. Thanks to optimism that the Fed would be able to engineer a soft landing, overall market sentiment improved [...]
U.S. Performance Dashboard – November 2023
Optimism returned to the market with a vengeance in November, as cooling inflation readings raised expectations for future Fed rate cuts, boosting U.S. equities, with the S&P 500® up 9% in November. With the exception of Energy, all sectors posted gains, led by Information Technology, up a staggering 13%. Consistent with the upbeat market sentiment, High Beta and Momentum led among factor indices, while their defensive counterparts Dividend Aristocrats and Low Volatility unsurprisingly lagged.
U.S. Performance Dashboard – October 2023
Despite strong economic growth, the market malaise continued, as mixed earnings results, surging Treasury yields, geopolitical tensions, as well as uncertainty surrounding the Fed’s future rate trajectory spooked U.S. equities, with the S&P 500® down 2% in October. Continued concerns around an impending recession were detrimental to the more domestically oriented S&P MidCap 400® and S&P SmallCap 600®, down 5% and 6%, respectively, underperforming their large-cap counterpart. Utilities was the sole sector to post a gain in [...]
U.S. Performance Dashboard – September 2023
As 10-year Treasury yields rose to a 15-year high, the U.S. market rally fizzled, with the S&P 500® down 3% in Q3. Pessimism amid renewed inflation concerns coupled with worries about the Fed's hawkish guidance saw the more domestically oriented S&P SmallCap 600® underperform, down 5%. Energy maintained its spot at the top of the leaderboard and was the sole sector to post a double-digit gain, propelled by rising oil prices.
U.S. Performance Dashboard – August 2023
Despite a strong recovery in the latter part of the month, the U.S. market rally took a breather in August, with the S&P 500® down 2%, as inflation concerns coupled with uncertainty around the future trajectory of rate hikes reared their head again. Smaller caps performed even worse, with the S&P SmallCap 600® down 4%. Energy maintained its spot at the top of the leaderboard and was the sole sector to post a gain. Momentum led among [...]
U.S. Performance Dashboard – July 2023
Powered by optimism surrounding softening inflation alongside strong earnings from Big Tech, the U.S. market rally gained steam in July, with the S&P 500® up 3%. The breadth of the market continued to widen as a result of small-cap momentum, with the S&P SmallCap 600 outperforming the S&P 500® Top 50 by 2%. All of our reported factor indices posted gains, led by Enhanced Value, up 6%. High Beta continued to trounce Low Volatility, a sign [...]
