How is your portfolio handling the up and down market of 2018?
Markets: It was a split week for the market, with the Dow and S&P 500 falling, and the the NASDAQ and the Russell gaining, A falling Turkish lira rocked global markets on Friday, and sent investors racing for safety in assets like the yen and US government bonds.
“China’s commerce ministry has announced that it will start imposing 25% import duties targeting $16bn (£12.4bn) worth of US goods. The Chinese counter-move will take effect immediately after the US imposes tariffs on the same amount of Chinese goods on 23 August.
The list of US imports affected by the taxes includes coal, oil, chemicals and some medical equipment. Last month, the US imposed duties of 25% on Chinese imports worth $34bn.
The US is also considering further tariffs on another $200bn worth of Chinese goods which could come into effect in September. For its part, China has threatened to ratchet up the tit-for-tat trade war by slapping tariffs on another $60B of American imports. At the same time, Beijing reported a $28.1bn trade surplus with the US in July, just below the record $28.9B seen in June. But it was 11% higher than in the same month last year.” (BBC)
Dividend Stocks Update: These high dividend stocks go ex-dividend this coming week: JBK, ABR, ARR, EVA, LKSD, PBFX, SEP, SXCP, AHC, APAM, CORR.
Volatility: The VIX rose 13%% this week, ending the week at $13.16.
Currency: The US dollar rose vs. most major currencies this week, but fell vs. the yen.
Market Breadth: 12 of the Dow 30 stocks rose this week, vs. 16 last week. 42% of the S&P 500 rose this week, vs. 56% last week.
Economic News: “US job openings held near record highs in June amid a modest decline in hiring, pointing to further tightening labor market conditions, which economists hope will soon spur faster wage growth. The monthly Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, or JOLTS, released by the Labor Department on Tuesday underscored labor market strength, which together with robust economic growth, likely paves the way for the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates in September. (Reuters)
“US consumer prices rose in July and the underlying trend continued to strengthen, pointing to a steady increase in inflation pressures that keeps the Federal Reserve on track to gradually raise interest rates.”
Week Ahead Highlights: It’ll be a heavy economic data week, with several housing-related reports due out, in addition to some industrial production reports. The market will be watching Turkey, for more fallout from its current currency woes. The final 3 Dow stocks report earnings: Cisco Systems Inc (NASDAQ:CSCO), Home Depot (NYSE:HD), and Walmart (NYSE:WMT).
Next Week’s US Economic Reports:
Sectors: The Telecoms sector led this week, with Consumer Staples trailing.
Futures:
WTI Crude finished the week at $67.75, with WTI down -1.14%. Natural Gas Futures rose again, gaining 3.12%:
