SPY
S&P 500
Last Week: 0.83%
YTD: 9.92%
1 Year: 28.39%
DIA
Dow Jones Industrial Average
Last Week: 1.73%
YTD: 5.39%
1 Year: 20.90%
ONEQ
NASDAQ
Last Week: -0.16%
YTD: 8.80%
1 Year: 34.57%
Russell 2000
Last Week: -0.10%
YTD: 2.05%
1 Year: 19.92%
Large Growth
YTD: 11.25%
1 Year: 36.59%
Large Value
YTD: 7.54%
1 Year: 20.23%
Consumer Sentiment
The University of Michigan Survey of Consumer Sentiment Index for May posted an initial reading of 67.4 for the month, down from 77.2 in April. The number represents a decline of 12.7% from the prior month. The large decrease in consumer sentiment is likely a reflection of the public perception of inflation. There is a lack of clear data showing inflation is cooling and when the Fed will start cutting rates. Perhaps the silver lining is consumers potentially tightening their spending, which will help cool inflation if we decrease the amount of money in circulation and increase savings.
Weekly Jobless Claims
The jobless claims last week jumped 22,000 from the week prior. The jobless claim numbers climbed to 231,000, the highest increase since August 2023. The initial filings for unemployment benefits hit their highest level since August. This could be a potential sign that the strong labor market is starting to soften. The red-hot labor market and record low unemployment were seen as a hindrance for the Fed when planning their rate cut strategy, we could now see this turning course and allow the Fed to start cutting rates if they see enough data supporting this and inflation decreasing.
U.K. Economy
The U.K. economy has emerged from a shallow recession that began in the second half of 2023. They posted a 0.6% gain in Gross Domestic Product in the first quarter of 2024. This data supports that they had a shallow recession late last year but have been able to climb out. Although there is no official definition of a recession, economists generally consider two back-to-back quarters of negative growth to be a technical recession. The very critical service sector for the U.K. grew in the first quarter, the first time they saw growth since the first quarter of 2023.
