Telemus Weekly Market Review November 18th - November 22nd, 2019

November 18 - November 22 Week in Review

It was a relatively quiet week as the markets took a breather last week after a six week winning stretch. The S&P 500 declined 0.3%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.5%, the Nasdaq Composite 0.3% and Russell 2000 0.5%.

The week began with the large cap indices closing at incremental record highs on Monday, but stocks ultimately struggled for direction the rest of the week. The S&P 500 materials and real estate sectors lost more than 1%. The health care, financials, and utilities sectors finished higher.

Trade talk headlines remained a large part of the equation, of course. Receiving the most attention last week was a Reuters report that briefly unnerved the market by suggesting a deal may not be completed this year. There was still no sustained pullback effort, though, as the consensus view was that some sort of deal is still more likely than not.

As for the December 15th tariffs, a report out of China had suggested that they could get delayed even if a deal isn't reached, but a FOX Business reporter said that they are still planned. Complicating the situation was the U.S. Senate passing the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act, which unsurprisingly drew the ire of Beijing. Chinese President Xi called for mutual respect and equality moving forward.

Back to the markets, stocks of retailers gained some attention as they reported earnings. Home Depot and Kohl's were some notable disappointments, while Target, Lowe's, and Nordstrom were some notable winners. Overall the SPDR S&P Retail ETF declined 2.3% last week.

In other corporate news Charles Schwab began talks to acquire TD Ameritrade for a reported $26 billion in a move that would help consolidate a disrupted industry. Investors applauded the news with shares of both companies climbing about 8% and 16%, respectively.

The U.S. Treasury market experienced some curve flattening activity last week. The 2 year yield increased two basis points to 1.63%, while the 10 year yield declined six basis points to 1.77%.

In other markets the U.S. Dollar Index increased 0.3% to 98.26 and WTI crude increased 0.2%, or $0.13, to $57.88 a barrel.

November 25 – November 29 Economic Calendar