Courtesy of Doug Short.
After four consecutive weeks of negative average performance, the eight indexes in our international collection finally posted a week of gains. Six of the eight finished in the green with an average gain of 1.17%. The DAXK, FTSE and Shanghai Composite were the top three performers, each with a 2 percent plus advance.
At the other end of the lineup, the Nikkei was the worst performer with a 0.80% decline for the week. France’s CAC 40, in next-to-last place, finished the week just shy of flat. It has been the worst or second from worst performer in our gang of eight for the past five weeks. The weakness of the CAC 40 has no doubt been a factor in voter sentiment leading up to the first round of voting in the forthcoming French elections.
The adjacent table shows the 2012 year-to-date performance of our indexes. The Hang Seng has taken over the top spot from the Nikkei, which drops to a close third behind the German index. Like last week four of the eight indexes are holding double-digit gains, down from six indexes four five ago. And not surprisingly the CAC 40 occupies the YTD cellar.
A Closer Look at the Last Four Weeks
The tables below provide a concise overview of performance comparisons over the past four weeks for these eight major indexes. I’ve also included the average for each week so that we can evaluate the performance of a specific index relative to the overall mean and better understand weekly volatility. The colors for each index name help us visualize the comparative performance over time.
The chart below illustrates the comparative performance of World Markets since March 9, 2009. The start date is arbitrary: The S&P 500, CAC 40 and BSE 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, Mumbai SENSEX, Hang Seng) is readily apparent.
Check back next weekend for a new update.
Note from dshort: At the suggestion of Joerg Willig, a finance professional in Germany, I replaced the DAX index, which includes dividends, with the price-only DAXK, which is consistent with the other indexes.
