Stocks had their third consecutive week of losses (although small caps were up) after concerns of the rising dollar, and potential higher interest rates, hurt the larger U.S.-based multinational companies whose products become more expensive overseas. The rising dollar also helped bring the price of oil down to $44.84, another key factor affecting strength in some stocks.
Here are the weekly, monthly, and annual TSP fund returns for the week ending March 13th:
The SPY (S&P 500 / C-fund) was affected by the dollar and was down about 0.8% for the week. After Friday's reversal to the downside, this week's action looks a lot like previous lows that we saw in January and mid-December so we may see this volatility continue.
The Wilshire 4500 (S-fund) was less affected by the dollar as smaller companies are more U.S. focused so currency fluctuations are less of an issue. After a bounce off of the 50-day EMA, the S-fund ended the week with a nice gain of 0.51%.
The EFA (EAFE Index / I fund) had the greatest loss of the TSP funds, and being most impacted by the strong dollar, ending down 1.73%. An open gap still lingers above that couldn't quite be filled on Thursday. The I-fund's 50-day EMA is still working on breaking through the 200-day EMA.
The AGG (Bonds / F-fund) posted a modest gain of 0.53% this week after it rebounded off the oversold H&S formation lows from last week. It managed to break through its old support line Wednesday and again broke through a key resistance line Thursday, however it fell back below the support line and the 50-day EMA on Friday.
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 TSP Talk Market Commentary.If you need more help deciding what to do with your account, perhaps one of our premium services can help.
Tommy Crowley
www.tsptalk.com
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