WEEKLY MARKET RECAP – DECEMBER 20, 2024

Stocks experienced a turbulent week, with major U.S. indexes declining approximately 2% overall, marked by a sharp drop on Wednesday. However, a partial recovery on Friday helped offset much of the earlier losses.

Major U.S. stock indexes fell between 3% and 4%, while bond yields surged after the Federal Reserve signaled fewer interest rate cuts in 2025 than previously anticipated. The Fed approved a widely expected quarter-point rate cut but scaled back projections from four cuts next year to two.

For the second consecutive week, bond prices dropped, driving yields higher. The 10-year U.S. Treasury note yield climbed to 4.59% on Thursday, its highest in nearly seven months, before retreating to 4.53% on Friday. This was a notable increase from 4.15% two weeks ago and 3.62% in mid-September.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 2.6% on Wednesday, marking its tenth consecutive day of losses—the longest streak since 1974. The index dropped 6.0% during this period but managed to break the streak with a slight gain on Thursday.

Investor sentiment turned volatile, with an index tracking short-term stock market volatility surging 74% on Wednesday, primarily after the Fed’s policy meeting. The Cboe Volatility Index closed at 27.7 that day, up from 15.9, before settling at 18.4 on Friday.

Meanwhile, the U.S. economy’s third-quarter growth exceeded initial estimates, with GDP rising at an annual rate of 3.1%, up from an earlier estimate of 2.8% and slightly above the second quarter’s 3.0% growth. GDP has now surpassed 2.0% in eight of the past nine quarters.

The U.S. dollar strengthened significantly after the Fed adopted a more hawkish stance, rising over 1% against major currencies to reach its highest level since November 2022.

Economic reports in the final days of 2024 will be sparse. Key releases include consumer confidence data on Monday, followed by reports on new home sales and durable goods on Tuesday. Looking further ahead, pending home sales data will be released on December 30, with home price reports on December 31.