Week of 11/20/17-11/24/17: Bulls had plenty to be thankful for last week as stocks rallied across the board. The S&P 500 and Dow both added just shy of 1% while the Nasdaq added more than 1.5%. All sectors ended the week in the black as well - led by technology and telecoms, both up nearly 2%. Globally, the trend held up too as the EAFE and ACWI both had strong results closing up 1.9% and 1.4% respectively. Emerging markets didn’t miss the boat continuing the strong run by adding another 1.5%.
A week shortened by the holiday, and light on volume when the markets were open, provided an opportunity for stocks to rally back from a couple of shaky weeks. Volatility also decreased as the Vix found its way back to single-digit territory. Headlines were fairly light but the Fed minutes led to some further flattening of the treasury curve. 10-year and 30-year rates dipped slightly while the 2-year ticked up. Oil prices also spiked with WTI up nearly $3 per barrel just in time for holiday travel.