bonds
January in Figures
January 31, 2014
Risk aversion reared its head again in January. Stocks fell. Bond prices rose, sending long-term yields downward. Commodity-sensitive and major European currencies declined, while the yen went up against the the euro as well as the dollar. Gold, in contrast to its 28.2% plunge in 2012, rose 3.2% in the first month of 2014. 10-Yr […] More
December, Fourth Quarter, and 2013 in Figures
January 1, 2014
Financial market trends in December for the most part conformed directionally with full-2013 results. 2013 was a banner year for share prices. Diverse movement in long-term interest rates had no notable influence over currency fluctuations aside from Japan, where the 10-year JGB yield closed below its end-2012 level and the yen depreciated across the board. […] More
October in Figures
October 31, 2013
Share prices strengthened in October with the notable exception of Japan. Long-term interest rates subsided further, while short-term rates remained steady and well below the long rates. The dollar closed narrowly mixed, and gold posted a minuscule dip. Oil prices fell around 6% and swung back below $100 per barrel. 10-Yr Yield 09/30/13 10/31/13 Chg […] More
September and the Third Quarter in Figures
September 30, 2013
The dollar traded lower in September except against the yen. Share prices advanced pretty strongly, and bond yields settled back, spurred by the Fed’s surprise decision not to taper just yet. The prices of gold and oil fell. During the third quarter, equities climbed, but the dollar eased against the currencies covered in this feature. […] More
August in Figures
August 31, 2013
August was a difficult month for equities and for U.S. and European sovereign debt. Central bank leaders failed to convince markets that a change in quantitative monetary easing wouldn’t constitute a shift in overall monetary policy for the simple reason that it isn’t so. Dollar/yen experienced only a minuscule net change in August, and JGB […] More
June in Figures
June 28, 2013
It’s been quite a month and quite a quarter for world financial markets. Long-term interest rates rose sharply in the quarter, but note that Abenomics succeeded in preventing JGB yields from climbing further in June even as rates elsewhere continued their ascent. The Australian and New Zealand dollars were especially weak in both the quarter […] More
May in Figures
May 31, 2013
May was a difficult month for commodity-sensitive currencies and ten-year fixed income securities. The U.S. dollar rose against most currencies between the start and end of May. Abenomics, a Japanese policy strategy to keep long-term interest rates low, boost share prices and counter upward pressure on the yen, was challenged in May, which saw the […] More
April in Figures
April 30, 2013
The yen weakened additionally in April, but the dollar failed to catapult above the key JPY 100 level. The dollar fell against European currencies, most commodity-sensitive currencies and the Chinese yuan. A more aggressive-than-anticipated Bank of Japan stimulus announced shortly after the start of the month was meant in large part to depress longer-term interest […] More
March and 1Q13 in Figures
March 30, 2013
Short-term interest rates remained ultra-low in the first quarter of 2013. The Federal Reserve retained an aggressive program of quantitative easing, while the Bank of Japan prepared to undertake an even more forceful monetary stimulus under new leadership. A number of key equity markets performed very well, especially Japan’s where the Nikkei-225 index jumped almost […] More
February in Figures
February 28, 2013
During February, commodity prices and sovereign debt yields fell, while the dollar advanced pretty much across the board. Three-month deposit rates stayed very low and edged marginally downward in some cases. Equities rose on balance but not as much as in January. The biggest stock market increases were in Japan and Switzerland, matching up with […] More
