Weekly Update 21 Mar 2025

National currencies and bonds fell, while stocks, commodities and cryptos were mixed. The biggest gains were in copper, up 3.2%, followed by Japanese large cap stocks, which rose 1.7%. The largest losses were in cotton, down 4.3%, and silver, down 3.3%. The US Dollar (along with the Yen and Yuan, among others) made new all-time lows this week, finishing down 1.2% at 10.3 mg.

The strongest national currency was the Canadian Dollar, which fell 0.8%. The Chinese Yuan and Euro tied for the weakest currency, falling 1.7%. US Dollar cash (down 1.2%) underperformed long term bonds (off 0.6%) and short term notes (down 1.0%).

The Nikkei 225 was the strongest equity index, up 1.7%, followed by the HUI gold stocks, up 1.5%. The Euro STOXX50 dropped the most, giving up 2.0%, followed by the S&P 500, which closed down 0.7%. The Dow Industrials finished the week little changed.

The strongest commodities were copper, up 3.2% and coffee, up 1.2%. The worst performers were cotton, down 4.3%, and silver, off 3.3%. The whole precious metals complex was lower, with platinum falling 2.9% and palladium down 2.6%.

Cryptocurrencies had a relatively quiet week, mostly trading sideways. Bitcoin ended down 1.1%, while Ethereum finished up 1.6%.