Daily Market Color December 31, 2018Risk Assets Look to End 2018 on Positive Note US Equities Higher to Close Out a Historically Bad December US equities are set to close moderately higher as both the S&P 500 (+0.58%) and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (+0.97%) sit in positive territory. Volume was 30-35% lower than normal for both indices as many investors sit on the sidelines ahead of the new year. Regardless of where equities close, December 2018 will go down in history as the worst for stocks since the Great Depression. Rates Lower to Round Out the Year The yield on the 10 year Treasury bill closed 3 basis points lower on the day, marking the eighth time in the last ten days rates have declined. Similar to the story in US equities, volume was muted in Treasurys as most investors look towards 2019. Crude Moves Higher With Risk Assets US crude currently sits up 0.77%- suggesting it will follow other risk assets with a positive session to close out the year. 2018 was a remarkably bad year for crude oil as a confluence of bearish factors on both the supply and demand side rattled investors.
