Markets have been resting while the US sleeps and gyrating when US markets open. Most of the world market is listed in the US but the difference in volatility between the US has become ever more pronounced in recent weeks.

The US S&P 500 was down for the 5th week in a row last week but only by 0.6%, a margin that belied what was in fact an incredibly volatile week. The Nasdaq was up by over 5% on Wednesday only to fall by even more on Thursday.

The Nasdaq finished the week with another 4% fall on Friday, closing down 13% for the month and more than 20% year to date. The wider US market was also down sharply and is now down 9% and 13% for the month and year to date respectively.

Slowing growth and rising rates also proved to be a strong headwind to local Materials and IT stocks respectively with both sectors down 5%.

On the face of it was a fairly quiet week leading into the Easter break with most markets ending flat for the shortened week; however, you didn’t have to look too far below the surface to find volatility.

We discuss Quantitative Tightening with our colleagues from Hunt Economics. With indicators continuing to show the risk of increasing inflation, central banks are looking at strategies to curb the inflation risk.

Last week Andrew visited the InvestSense offices and shared his observations and findings from his visit to the United States, specifically New York.

Last week the S&P 500 traded in a 3% range, having done a 2% round trip on Thursday, followed by a 3% fall on Friday after the inflation data release and then another almost 2% round trip yesterday. Emerging markets were the worst performing, down 4% for the week. Taking a step back though, most equity markets haven’t given back that much of their gains from January, while Europe and the Nasdaq remain up 10% for the year.

As the world’s elite gathered in a snowless Davos, markets focused on much more immediate concerns, starting with the continuing wave of layoffs in corporate America. Amazon, Microsoft, Alphabet (Google’s parent company), Salesforce and Goldman Sachs, among others, took turns to announce staff cuts. It would appear boardrooms and CEOs are lending some credence to the possibility of a recession in 2023.

In light of the recent inflation data coming out of the US, we dive in to why the market is so upset about a 0.1% increase in prices, and what this means from an Australian investor's perspective.

Fears of a US recession later this year gathered pace last week and the US equity market jumped by almost 7% and the Nasdaq was up some 9%.

In recent years professional investors have got increasingly used to the fact that good news is bad news for markets because higher interest rates are likely to be necessary, and of course vice-versa. However, last week the effect was stronger than ever and stocks rallied mid-week amidst reports of widespread lay-offs and expectations of a weak US jobs report.

There are many direct assets and funds that contribute positively to climate action within the InvestSense Better World Portfolios. Meridian Energy is one of the stand-out direct assets in the portfolio with a climate energy focus.

ETFs that invest in carbon credits are now available. Why should we assume that their price will go up over time? And does buying a carbon credit ETF actually contribute positively to emissions reduction? Will it actually generate the outcome investors are expecting? This article explores the issues around investing in carbon credits.

Nathan Fradley explains how the ethosesg technology can help you assess and design an ethical portfolio that aligns to an investor’s personal values.