This morning's economic news was good. The August Advance Retail Sales rose 0.6% above an upwardly revised July number, and a preliminary look at consumer sentiment surprised to the upside. The market, however, did not celebrate. The popular explanation is that today's economic news lifts the odds of a Fed rate hike sooner rather than later, with general anxiety increased by the proximity of next week's FOMC meeting. The S&P 500 opened in the red and dropped steadily to its -0.86% afternoon low. A bit of dip-buying trimmed the closing loss to -0.60%.
The yield on the U.S. 10-Year Note closed at 2.62%, up 16 bps from last week's close. It is now 28 bps above its 2014 low.
Here is a 15-minute chart of the week:
Here is a weekly chart with 10-week moving averages for price and volume. This week's 1.10% decline snaps a string of six weekly advances. The loss came on increased volume.
For a longer-term perspective, here is a pair of charts based on daily closes starting with the all-time high prior to the Great Recession.
