US Equity Markets posted declines last week despite generally positive US economic data as forecasts for economic growth have come down amid ongoing supply chain constraints and inflation concerns. The S&P 500 fell 0.6% for the week and is now up 18.0% for the year. The Nasdaq was down 0.5% for the week to bring its gains for the year to 16.7%, while the positive US economic data boosted the Russell 2000 (small cap stocks) by 0.4% for the week to bring its gains for the year to 13.3%.
Global Equity Markets were hit by global growth concerns thanks to weak retail sales data out of both Europe and China, exacerbated by reports of a possible default by a large Chinese property company. Developed Markets dropped 1.4% for the week led by declines in European shares, bringing their gains for the year to 10.1%. Emerging Markets fell 2.3% for the week as weakness in China weighed on markets. For the year, Emerging Markets are now down 0.9%.
US Economic Data were positive last week. Retail Sales for August rose 0.7%, much stronger than forecasts that called for notable declines. Consumer Prices rose 0.3% in August, also better than expected, causing the year-over-year increase in consumer prices to tick down to 5.3% from 5.4% in July. Measures of manufacturing activity for September came in significantly better than projections, showing a robust pick-up from August.
Of Interest to Us
Despite overall employment levels showing 5 million jobs less than pre-COVID levels, the companies within the S&P 500 now have higher aggregate employment than at the end of 2019. Employment within the Technology sector is up over 25% since 2019, while Healthcare is up over 7%. The employment picture certainly suggests that larger firms have been able to weather COVID better than smaller firms and helps explain why large-cap stocks have continued to do well.
Market Data
for the week ending 9/17/2021
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