The Week on Wall Street
Investors endured another volatile, whipsaw week as ongoing trade talks and White House comments about the economy unsettled investors.
The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index declined 2.27 percent, while the Nasdaq Composite Index dropped 2.43 percent. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 3.07 percent. The MSCI EAFE Index, which tracks developed overseas stock markets, lost 0.95 percent.1,2
Markets Stem Losses
Stocks opened the week lower as investors reacted to the president’s weekend comments about the economy. Then, U.S. and Canadian leaders traded additional tariff threats, riling up anxious investors.3,4
Stocks rebounded midweek after a cooler-than-expected Consumer Price Index (CPI) report eased growing inflation concerns.5
The broad market slide resumed Thursday, but better-than-expected February wholesale inflation data helped buffer losses. The S&P 500 ended Thursday in correction territory—10 percent below its February 19 record close.6
Markets pushed higher Friday, clawing back some losses for the week. News of progress in resolving the federal government shutdown soothed investors’ nerves.7
Sunny Side ‘Down’
Fewer CPI constituents garner more attention from consumers right now than the price of eggs. Avian bird flu—and the subsequent culling of millions of chickens—was primarily to blame for prices rising 15 percent in January and another 10 percent in February. While recent evidence suggests prices have dropped, the cost of eggs remains a sticky issue—even though prices of many other items have risen just as much, if not more.8,9
So why do consumers appear to be overly uneasy?
One theory is that eggs symbolize something more significant. Not only are eggs a critical, inexpensive source of protein and nutrients for millions of consumers, but they are also a core part of many other foods made at home or mass-produced. For that reason, eggs are a mental proxy for how consumers believe the broader economy is doing.10
Weekly Riddle
I twist, I turn, but I don’t have curves. You can twist me to fix me, but you may throw me into disarray in the process. Hours later, you may cast me away. What am I?
Last week’s riddle: What binds two people together yet touches only one person at a time?
Answer: An individual wedding ring.
John Dombroski Jr. may be reached at (480) 991-1055 or [email protected]
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