Market Memo | November 2023
November gave investors reasons to give thanks. Now they are left wondering if Santa came early this year, or if there are gifts still to be delivered.
November gave investors reasons to give thanks. Now they are left wondering if Santa came early this year, or if there are gifts still to be delivered.
October provided mostly tricks, with a hint of treats toward the close of the month. Twice during the month, the 10-year Treasury bond reached or exceeded 5%, a rate that has not been seen since 2007.
Fall is in the air, and the US stock market has taken its cue, with the S&P 500 index posting the worst month this year, falling 4.77%. Bonds were not much better, falling 2.54% for the month.
In the heat of summer, returns across both stocks and bonds were decidedly cold. The main driver of underperformance for the month was expectations of the future path of interest rates.
June continued a run of surprising stock market returns for 2023. One month does not make a trend, but it's comforting to see stocks perform positively.