Courtesy of Doug Short
Here is the latest weekend snapshot of seven major world indexes. For the previous three consecutive weeks, the DAX and S&P 500 had ended at new interim highs. But last week the DAX was the worst performer with a 3.25% loss, and the S&P 500 finished only fractionally above its level of three weeks ago. The Shanghai Composite, the market furthest from its interim high, gave up the least ground for the week.
The chart below illustrates the comparative performance of World Markets since March 9, 2009. The start date is arbitrary: The S&P 500 and Bombay SENSEX hit their lows on March 9th, the Nikkei 225 on March 10th, the DAX on March 6th, the FTSE on March 3rd, the Shanghai Composite on November 4, 2008, and the Hang Seng even earlier on October 27, 2008. However, by aligning on the same day and measuring the percent change, we get a better sense of the relative performance than if we align the lows.
A Longer Look Back
Here is the same chart starting from the turn of 21st century. The relative over-performance of the emerging markets (Shanghai, Bombay, Hang Seng) is readily apparent. However the pattern has generally been reversing over the past few months.
