ClearWater Market Commentary as of November 19th, 2021

Here is the ClearWater Market Commentary as of November 19th, 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 Day-0.38%
1 Month1.60%
YTD23.64%
1 Year26.65%

As of 2021/11/19 – Source: www.marketwatch.com

Index PerformancesLast 5 DaysYTD
Shanghai Composite1.42%3.18%
Nasdaq1.28%24.59%
S&P 5000.32%25.08%
DAX0.07%17.79%
Nikkei 225-0.15%8.34%
CAC 40-0.23%28.12%
S&P/TSX Composite-0.38%23.64%
Dow Jones Industrial-1.35%16.32%
Hang Send Index-1.64%-8.29%
FTSE 100-1.74%11.81%
Russell 2000-2.47%18.57%
WTI Crude (oil)-6.30%56.00%

As of 2021/11/19 – Source: www.marketwatch.com


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

US economy (S&P 500 0.07%):

  • The major indexes ended the week mixed as investors weighed on strong economic and profits data against inflation fears, ongoing supply strains, and a rise in coronavirus infections in some regions.
  • Growth stocks handily outpaced value stocks, helping lift the Nasdaq Composite to another record intraday high on Friday.
  • Energy stocks dropped alongside oil prices after China and the U.S. discussed releasing strategic reserves and U.S. inventories rose for the first time in five weeks.
  • Several signs however indicate that economic expansion is regaining momentum. The Commerce Department reported that retail sales jumped 1.7% in October, the biggest gain since March. Industrial production in October also rose much more than expected.

Canadian markets (S&P/TSX -0.38%):

  • New European COVID lockdowns rattled investors to end the week as Canada's main stock index fell with commodities faltering on worries about the impact on demand.
  • The S&P/TSX composite index closed down 82.51 points to 21,555.03 for nearly a one percent drop from last Friday’s record close.
  • In addition to some profit-taking, the market drop is a buying opportunity, especially for energy stocks. Producers are generating a lot of cash flows after adjusting their operations and that money should be funnelled to dividends and share buybacks. 
  • The energy sector was the big laggard Friday, losing 3.2 percent as crude oil prices continued to fall.

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

European and Asian economies:

  • Shares in Europe were little changed, as a surge in the number of coronavirus infections clouded the economic outlook.
  • Core eurozone bond yields fell on dovish comments from European Central Bank (ECB) President Christine Lagarde. She pushed back against interest rate increases on the grounds that inflation would fade.
  • Austria announced a nationwide lockdown due to a recent surge in COVID cases
  • Other European countries also began reimposing stricter restrictions—including stay-at-home orders and movement controls, including the Netherlands and Germany.
  • UK inflation hit the highest level in almost a decade in October, reaching 4.2% on an annual basis—up from 3.1% in September. 
  • The number of payroll employees also increased by 160,000 to 29.3 million between September and October. These developments prompted speculation that the Bank of England (BoE) might increase interest rates in December.
  • Japan’s stock market returns were muted over a week that saw the government announce a larger-than-expected stimulus package, with record fiscal support of JPY 55.7 trillion (around USD 490 billion). By carrying out the stimulus package with a sense of urgency, Kishida hopes to rebuild Japan’s pandemic-hit economy and put it on a growth path as soon as possible.
  • A sizable portion of the spending will go toward infection prevention and reinforcing medical systems.
  • BoJ Governor Haruhiko Kuroda publicly spoke as well that amid firmness in the corporate sector, he expects an improving trend in the overall economy to become evident in the first half of 2022. He also said that while it is likely that the inflation rate will gradually increase, it will not meet the central bank’s 2% price stability target by then.
  • Chinese markets ended mixed this week amid disappointing earnings and revenue from e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding.
  • The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) continued to signal its support for the economy as it unveiled its latest targeted lending program, this time aimed at the domestic coal sector with RMB 200 billion in financing. 
  • Data released at the start of the week showed that economic momentum stayed weak in October as the real estate downturn weighed on the industry.
  • Inside the troubled development sector, China Huarong Asset Management Co., a bad debts manager that has become a test of Beijing’s willingness to bail out troubled state-owned borrowers, said it plans to raise USD 6.6 billion via asset sales to stay afloat.
  • Analysts are eyeing Huarong’s actions as a possible template that other highly indebted companies might follow as Beijing stays the course of its deleveraging campaign. Shares in Europe were little changed, as a surge in the number of coronavirus infections clouded the economic outlook.

What to watch this week:

  • No material releases in Canada
  • US housing, durable goods orders, and personal income data
  • Minutes from the US and European central bank meetings
  • Eurozone consumer confidence data
  • Global Purchasing Manager Indices
  • 12 S&P 500 and 3 S&P/TSX companies report earnings

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

Thank you for checking out our ClearWater Market Commentary for November 19th, 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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