ClearWater Market Commentary as of March 15th, 2021

Here is the ClearWater Market Commentary as of March 15th, 2021:

In this issue:
– Performance of Major Indices
– Market Commentary
– Last Week’s Key Economic  
  Events and Upcoming Events

Performance of Principle Indexes: 

S&P/TSX Composite Index  
5 Day2.56%
1 Month2.12%
YTD8.13%
1 Year37.44%

As of 2021/03/05 – Source: www.marketwatch.com

Index PerformancesLast 5 DaysYTD
Russell 20006.86%19.20%
Nasdaq 5.64%3.35%
CAC 403.27%3.98%
DAX2.89%0.04%
S&P/TSX Composite 2.56%8.13%
Dow Jones Industrial 2.48%4.61%
FTSE 1001.12%4.25%
S&P 5001.07%2.54%
Nikkei 225 0.67%0.16%
WTI Crude (oil) -0.80%35.20%
Hang Seng Index -2.75%2.94%
Shanghai Composite -6.43%-1.53%

As of 2021/03/12


Last week’s and next week’s key economic events:
 

US economy (S&P 500 1.07%):

  • On Thursday, President Biden also signed into law the USD 1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act, following its passage in Congress on a party-line vote. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen stated that direct USD 1,400 payments to most Americans, a key part of the bill, should begin showing up in bank accounts as early as the weekend. 
  • After starting the week with a down day, the S&P 500 turned sharply higher when the core Consumer Price Index rose at a slower pace than forecast, even as economic data showed an improving labour market.
  • Applications for US jobless benefits fell to their lowest level since November, and higher-than-expected job openings signalled stronger job growth in the coming months.
  • The consumer discretionary sector led the gains in the S&P 500 as benchmark heavyweights Amazon.com Inc. and Tesla Inc. were especially strong. The communication services and energy sectors underperformed. 
  • Progress in the fight against the coronavirus also seemed to support sentiment. The U.S. administered a new high of 5 million doses of vaccine over the previous weekend, and, after seeming to plateau the previous week, the daily count of new cases resumed its decline. 

Canadian markets (S&P/TSX 2.56%):

  • The rebound in stocks lifted some indices to new all-time highs, including Canada’s S&P/TSX Composite.
  • The Bank of Canada was among the institutions that were suggesting that inflation was likely to remain tame despite massive stimulus and that the recent backup in global bond yields was not a cause for concern.
  • The bank held its interest rates and bond-buying programs unchanged at its policy meeting and reiterated that no changes were expected soon.
  • he bank also acknowledged that Canada’s economy has endured the second wave of COVID-19 much better than expected. Friday’s surprisingly strong employment report underscored that view.
  • Every sector of the TSX made gains. The small and volatile health care sector led with the strongest jump after Mexican lawmakers voted to liberalize the nation’s marijuana laws. The technology sector lagged as the ongoing shift of momentum from pandemic winners to reopening beneficiaries caused e-commerce giant Shopify Inc. to lose ground for a fourth consecutive week. Communication services also underperformed.

Performance 2021: S&P 500/400/600 Sectors

European and Asian economies:

  • European stock markets were all higher, with gains accelerating after the European Central Bank said that it will significantly increase the purchases of bonds under its pandemic quantitative easing program and ECB President Christine Lagarde said long-term inflation expectations were subdued.
  • The ECB’s action to help dampen the rise in long-term interest rates helped US yields turn lower by raising investors’ hopes that the Federal Reserve will eventually act as well.
  • UK stocks underperformed after industrial production fell more than expected and Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey cautioned about downside risks to the economy.
  • Most Asian markets rose as concerns about higher bond yields receded.
  • However, stocks in Hong Kong and Shanghai finished the week lower after reports that China’s antitrust regulators were escalating a campaign to limit the influence of large technology and Internet companies such as Tencent Holdings Ltd.

What to watch this week:

Canada

  • Housing starts (February)
  • Manufacturing sales (January)
  • Consumer Price index (February)
  • Retail sales (January)

U.S.

  • Federal Reserve interest rate decision (March 17)
  • Empire State Manufacturing Survey (March)
  • Import and Export Price Indices (February)
  • Retail sales (February)
  • Industrials production (February)
  • Capacity utilization (February)
  • Housing starts and building permits (February)
  • Conference Board Leading Index (February)

Sources: Bloomberg.com,Yardeni.com, Barron’s.com, Factset.com and Newyorkfed.org

Thank-you for checking out our ClearWater Market Commentary for March 15th, 2021. If you would like to receive the ClearWater Commentary at the start of every week, sign-up for our Newsletter.

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