Weekly Update 30 Oct 2020

Bonds moved higher, stocks and commodities declined, and currencies (both national and crypto) were mixed. The biggest gains were in Bitcoin, which rose 6.0%, and the Chinese Yuan, which gained 1.5%. Crude oil plunged 9.3% and the Euro STOXX fell 7.9%, the largest losses this week.

Asia led the national currencies on the upside, as the Chinese Yuan gained 1.5% and the Japanese Yen rose 1.4%. Europe lagged, declining 0.4%. The US Dollar rose 1.2%, as did its short term notes. Long term bonds gained 0.9%.

Bitcoin worked its way higher throughout the week, closing at 223.9 grams, up 6%. Ether zig-zagged lower, ending the week at 6.33 grams, down 5.5%. The CCi30 index of the 30 largest cap cryptos closed off 2.9%.

All the equities in my table finished lower, but the Nikkei outperformed its peers by dropping just 0.9%. The Euro STOXX, down 7.9%, saw the largest loss of any asset this week. The Dow Industrials were off 5.4% and the S&P 500 closed down 4.5%.

The only "bright spot" in the commodities was coffee, which managed to close unchanged; all others lost ground. Crude oil fell 9.3%, and platinum and palladium were hit hard, dropping 6.0% and 5.9% respectively. Copper held up relatively well, declining just 1.5%.

Year over year, the cryptocurrencies are clearly in the driver's seat, as Ether rose 58.9% and Bitcoin gained 16.7%. Gold stocks were not far behind, adding 16.3%. National currencies, bonds, and the major stock indexes are all deep in the red, but the worst performer continues to be crude oil, down 48.6%, with the Euro STOXX in second place, off 32.2%.