Global markets took another beating last week as almost all
countries' stock markets and sectors declined. The only market that
was not down was Japan, while most other markets fell 2 percent or
more with the UK, Germany, Sweden, and Portugal losing more than 3
percent in the week. On the sector side, metals and
mining were the big losers, declining more than 4 percent
each.
Disappointing Q3 earnings were partly to blame for the bad
performance, along with concern about the looming US fiscal cliff
issue dominating the market in the weeks to come. Talks
between Democrats and Republicans regarding a new budget and the
fiscal cliff seem to be progressing which will most likely remove
some of the concern in the market this week. In addition, better
than expected US GDP growth of 2.9 percent could provide more
support for a small weekly rebound.
The poor Q3 earnings season is coming to an end with only a few
big names left. including Lowes Company, beleaguered HP, and Deere
& Co.
