Markets withstand COVID-19 volatility

markets/ASX/S&P/US/China/Japan/

8 January 2021
| By Laura Dew |
image
image image
expand image

Only two major stockmarkets ended the year in negative territory, according to FE Analytics, despite a global pandemic causing disruption to markets.

Data from 1 January, 2020, to 31 December, 2020, found the ASX 200 returned 1.4% during the period while its small-cap counterpart the ASX Small Ordinaries index rose by 9.2%.

The best-performing market over the year was the Nasdaq which rose 35.6% thanks to its high weighting to technology stocks which were winners during the year due to remote working and stay-at-home restrictions.

The two markets which reported negative returns were the UK’s FTSE 100 which lost 16.8% and the Dow Jones Composite index which lost 0.33%.

The third major US index, S&P 500, returned 7.2% with US President Donald Trump regularly commenting on how the US stockmarket was reaching record highs last year.

In Asian markets, the Shanghai Composite index in China had returned 10.4% with China being the first region out of the pandemic. Japan’s TOPIX index returned 2.5% while the Nikkei rose 11.4%.

 

Read more about:

AUTHOR

Recommended for you

sub-bgsidebar subscription

Never miss the latest news and developments in wealth management industry

MARKET INSIGHTS

So we are now underwriting criminal scams?...

5 months ago

Glad to see the back of you Steve. You made financial more expensive, not more affordable as you claim, and presided ...

5 months ago

Completely agree Peter. The definition of 'significant change is circumstances relevant to the scope of the advice' is s...

7 months ago

Commonwealth Bank has formally dropped to zero advisers following LGT Crestone’s acquisition of its advice arm – some six years on from the Hayne royal commission. ...

3 weeks 6 days ago

The FSCP has issued a written direction to an adviser who charged clients “extraordinary fees” for inappropriate and conflicted advice, as well as encouraged them to swit...

1 week 3 days ago

ASIC has cancelled the AFSL of an advice firm associated with Shield and First Guardian collapses, and permanently banned its responsible manager. ...

2 weeks 5 days ago

TOP PERFORMING FUNDS

ACS FIXED INT - AUSTRALIA/GLOBAL BOND
Fund name
3y(%)pa
1
DomaCom DFS Mortgage
92.15 3 y p.a(%)
3