TSP Talk Weekly Wrap Up
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, 09-12-2020 at 03:29 PM (891 Views)
Stocks fell for the second week in a row and the previous week's spike in volatility resumed into this week. Stock investors have been excited. The herd's climb higher was disrupted last week and fear has driven volatility in the markets. Again it is the big tech names dragging down the indices. The Nasdaq fell into the technical correction territory of 10% off the recent highs. During the recovery climb off the March lows investors have been scratching their head as to why the market is going straight up while the economy is bad shape. A big portion of that was the success of the tech giants and their weight in the indices. Well those large tech names like Apple and Amazon are in a correction phase right now and are bringing the broad market with them.
A plus side is this pull back and corrective action gives the other companies of the indices to attract new buyers and catch up to the large tech sector. This will be a healthy move for the markets as a whole. If you are wondering if this is temporary and a good time to buy, there are reasons to suggest the volatility is not over. For one, we are in a typical low volume season before the holidays that tends to get pushed around more easily. On top of that we are quickly approaching elections and the outcome will have tremendous effects on the economy and markets. If you have money to put to work and feel this is your entry point, prepare to stomach more volatility over the next few months.
Both the C and S-fund fell more than two percent for the week. The I-fund outperformed with a gain of 0.76%. Bonds became popular again with fear being added the stocks. The F-fund added 0.24%.
Here are the weekly, monthly, and annual TSP fund returns for the week ending September 11th:
The SPY's (S&P 500 / C-fund) still hangs onto the gains since August. The lows of the week came Friday and we saw the 50-day EMA held as support. This is a good sign at the moment but the swings of this week covered the climb of most of August. Its not impossible to imagine these wide range days can extend more to the downside if provoked. We now sit between the 20 and 50-day EMA trading range. The C-fund fell 2.49% for the week.
The Dow Completion Index (S-fund) lagged again this week and its chart looks more technically troubled. The index jumped around its 50-day EMA this week and eventually ended the week below the moving average. Support is failing and resistance is keeping the index down. The S-fund lagged the TSP funds with a loss of 2.96% for the week.
EFA (EAFE Index /I-fund) had volatility continue but was able to climb higher out of the losses produced the previous week. The index started the week falling to its 50-day EMA but gapped up higher Wednesday into positive territory for the week. The gapped did get closed but the index recovered from there as well to end the week with a gain of 0.76% to outperform the TSP funds.
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The BND (Bonds / F-fund) added to its price this week with fears that stocks are on the edge marked bonds as a safe destination. The index was in negative territory on Thursday but climbed back Friday to end the week with a gain of 0.24%.
Good luck and thanks for reading. We will be back here next week with another TSP Wrap Up. You can read our daily market commentary at the Market Comments page. If you need more help deciding what to do with your account, perhaps one of our Premium Services can help.
Thomas A Crowley
www.tsptalk.com
Weekly Wrap-Ups Archive
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