Week In Review

The week that was:

The main focus last week was again the Middle East, particularly the events in Libya.  As a result, U.S. oil prices have been pushed up to around $100 per barrel and have caused many to question the potential drag of higher oil prices on the U.S. economy.  Most energy analysts on the street say $120 is the point where oil will start to significantly hurt the economy.  Obviously, if the political unrest spreads to Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, oil should be expected to continue to head north.

The European debt crisis has not been front page news of late, but the troubles there remain.  It will only be a matter of time before these problems resurface. 

Stocks:

The S&P 500 fell 23.13 points this week, or 1.72%, to 1319.88.  The Nasdaq Composite fell 52.90 points, or 1.87%, to 2781.05.  The Dow Industrials fell 260.80 points, or 2.10%, to 12130.45.  This marks the biggest weekly percentage drop for the S&P and Dow since November 12, 2010.

Bonds:

End of week bond yields:

3 Month yield = 0.11%, up 4 bps from last week.

3 Year yield = 1.20%, down 10 bps from last week.

5 Year yield = 2.16%, down 11 bps from last week.

10 Year yield = 3.41%, down 17 bps from last week.

30 Year yield = 4.50%, down 19 bps from last week.

What to look for next week:

7:30 AM          Monday           Personal Income and Outlays

9:00 AM          Monday           Pending Home Sales Index

9:00 AM          Tuesday           ISM Manufacturing Index

7:30 AM          Thursday         Jobless Claims

7:30 AM          Friday              Employment Situation

• Economists expect the unemployment rate to show that nonfarm payrolls increased by 192,000 new jobs in February, after a gain of 36,000 in January.

Also:

• Apple will unveil the second version of the iPad tablet on Wednesday.
• There will be plenty of talk about a potential government shutdown, which may happen as soon as March 5^th if lawmakers don’t approve a funding plan by next Friday.