After briefly stumbling the week of September 4, domestic indexes notched significant gains last week and hit record highs. By Friday, the S&P 500 exceeded 2,500 for the first time, the Dow closed at its highest level ever, and the NASDAQ reached an intraday record. Each of the indexes gained well over 1% for the week, with the S&P 500 adding 1.58%, the Dow jumping 2.16%, and the NASDAQ increasing 1.39%. International stocks in the MSCI EAFE also performed well, with a weekly gain of 0.55%.
When looking at these sizable increases, you might expect that positive data and geopolitical calm filled the news last week. Instead, we experienced a number of occurrences that could have derailed stock performance:
- North Korea tested another missile
- London experienced a terrorist attack
- Industrial production declined in August
- Retail sales fell in August
So, why did stocks rise despite these less-than-stellar updates?
Of course, it goes without saying that the markets are incredibly complex. You can rarely, if ever, point to a single reason for their performance. Still, a few details may help put this week’s seemingly incongruous gains into perspective.
1. Investors mostly ignored North Korea and the London bombing.