Weekly Market Recap – April 26th, 2019
In the Markets
The S&P 500 and NASDAQ set new highs closing the week, with the S&P 500 up 1.2%, and the NASDAQ gaining 1.9% on the week. The S&P 500’s gains marked a 17.3% year to date increase as the index approached $2940. This latest rise in U.S. equities was marked by strong economic data and rising earnings. U.S. economic data revealed an increase in new home sales and durable goods orders for March, while the first quarter GDP grew 3.2%. Additionally, inflation remained tame as strong earnings growth came from large-cap companies.
The Dow Jones, however, was down 0.1% on the week, with a less positive narrative overseas, impacting industrials with large overseas exposure. Economic data from China, Japan, South Korea, and Germany all displayed slowing growth.
Crude oil was a story of two different contracts, as Brent crude futures gained 0.25%, while WTI futures dropped 1.11%. The dichotomous relationship extended to oil products, with gasoline gaining 1.35%, while heating oil lost 0.96%. Natural gas made a slight rebound from its recent losses, though failing to return to its March numbers, gaining 2.96%.
Gold led precious metals with a 1.27% gain on the week, while silver posted more muted gains, up 0.33%. Platinum, however, fell 0.51% on the week. Copper fell below the $2.9 mark, losing 1.18%.
Agricultural commodities again saw losses across the board, as soybeans dropped 3.24%, corn dropped 2.06%, and wheat fell 2.38%. Lean hogs, having skyrocketed in the wake of the Chinese swine flu outbreak, retreated this week, down 3.68%. Coffee managed a gain of 2.7% on the week.
World Cup Trading Championships
Two traders broke the 200% net return last week, as Eduardo Ramos finished in 1st place with a net return of 250.8%, followed by Durai Ramasamy’s net return of 205.8%. Andrei Balanescu finished in 3rd place with a net return of 103.4%, followed by Lukas Schreiber’s net return of 89.3%. Holly Springs Pharmacy rounded out the top 5 with a net return of 82.4%.
Trading futures and forex involves significant risk of loss and is not suitable for everyone. Past performance is not necessarily indicative of future results. World Cup Championship (WCC ) accounts do not necessarily represent all the trading accounts controlled by a given competitor. WCC competitors may control accounts that produce results substantially different than the results achieved in their WCC accounts. WCC entrants may trade more than one account in the competition.