Market highlights (week 26/2022)

US markets

The S&P closed out its worst first half in 50 years on Thursday losing 20.6% in the first 6 months of 2022.

The Dow Jones is down more than 14%, the Nasdaq index with focus on tech is down nearly 30 % year to date. Cryptocurrencies are out of favor too, with Bitcoin losses approaching 60%.

The main factor worrying investors is inflation and the FED is now reversing the monetary policy to a restrictive one.

The market was used to low rates and quantitative easing for more than a decade, but surging prices have completely changed that narrative.

European markets

European markets have suffered too. The pan-European Stoxx 600 index lost 9% in the second quarter of the year (the worst three-month period since beginning of the pandemic) and was down nearly 16% year-to-date.

Oil

Oil prices fell nearly 3% on Thursday (June 30) after the OPEC+ meeting.

The group of producers said it would stick to its planned oil output hikes in August, meaning they will increase monthly overall production for the month of August to 648,000 barrels per day. The group avoided discussing policy from September onward. Analysts are also starting to worry as how much spare capacity the OPEC and members have.

Gold

Gold prices are on track for the third straight weekly decline this Friday, weighted by the rising US dollar and rising US treasury yields. Higher interest rates raise the opportunity cost of holding gold while a stronger dollar makes gold more expensive for buyers who are holding other currencies.

Holdings of the SPDR Gold Trust, the world’s largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund fell 0.22% on Thursday (June 30).