Brief
This report covers the 12th week of the year spanning Friday, March 17th, through Friday, March 24, 2023.
- The Fed increases rates 25 basis points to 5.00%
- Bitcoin (BTC) is flat this week following a 35.9% gain the previous week
- NASA confirms and catalogs 12 new Exoplanets
Economic Reports
Monday Mar 20th
- No notable economic reports
Tuesday Mar 21st
- Existing Home Sales for February were 4.58M higher than the expected 4.16M and higher than January’s 4.00M
Wednesday Mar 22nd
- FOMC Rate Decision The US Federal Reserve Bank increased target Federal Funds Rate 25 basis points to 4.75-5.00 this was inline with expectations
Thursday Mar 23rd
- Initial Jobless Claims for last week decreased by 1,000 to 191,000 new claims, reasonably less than the expected 204,000
- Continuing Jobless Claims increased by 14,000 to 1.694 million
- Housing Starts for February were 1,450K reasonably higher than expected 1,313K, and higher than January’s 1,321K
- New Home Sales for February were 640K slightly less than the expected 650K
Friday Mar 24th
- Durable Orders for February decreased 1.0% lower than the expected increase of 1.6%
Next Week’s Major Reports
- Consumer Confidence – Tuesday 28th
- GDP Third Estimate – Thursday 30th
- Personal Income – Friday 31st
- PCE Prices – Friday 31st
See more Economic News at Briefing.com or learn about each economic report on our education page
US Stocks
US stocks were up this week with the Wilshire Total Market Index rising 1.28%. Communication Services lead the rise being up 3.4%.
| Index | Week Close | Week Change | Change % | Low | Week Range | High | YTD Performance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DJIA | 32,237.53 | 375.55 | 1.18% | 31,805.18 | 32,761.89 | -2.74% | ||
| Nasdaq | 11,823.96 | 193.45 | 1.66% | 11,550.69 | 12,013.99 | 12.97% | ||
| S&P 500 | 3,970.99 | 54.35 | 1.39% | 3,909.16 | 4,039.49 | 3.42% | ||
| Wilshire 5000 | 39,259.36 | 496.51 | 1.28% | 38,969.05 | 39,674.70 | 3.11% |
| Index | Week Close | Week Change | Change % | Low | Week Range | High | YTD Performance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Communication Services | 188.77 | 6.21 | 3.40% | 183.44 | 188.77 | 18.45% | ||
| Consumer Discretionary | 1,102.47 | 4.81 | 0.44% | 1,101.95 | 1,131.84 | 9.65% | ||
| Consumer Staples | 761.34 | 10.71 | 1.43% | 749.13 | 761.34 | -2.28% | ||
| Energy | 598.03 | 13.39 | 2.29% | 596.32 | 617.60 | -11.05% | ||
| Financials | 515.97 | 2.95 | 0.58% | 515.97 | 532.33 | -9.44% | ||
| Health Care | 1,484.65 | 21.84 | 1.49% | 1,465.45 | 1,490.34 | -6.36% | ||
| Industrials | 820.48 | 5.48 | 0.67% | 817.61 | 835.38 | -1.31% | ||
| Information Technology | 2,552.04 | 51.08 | 2.04% | 2,504.44 | 2,552.04 | 17.49% | ||
| Materials | 484.05 | 10.05 | 2.12% | 480.17 | 489.45 | -1.12% | ||
| Real Estate | 223.26 | -3.12 | -1.38% | 217.66 | 228.79 | -3.92% | ||
| Utilities | 333.82 | -4.05 | -1.20% | 323.73 | 340.62 | -6.88% |
Global Stocks
| Index | Week Close | Week Change | Change % | Low | Week Range | High | YTD Performance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK FTSE 100 | 7,405.45 | 70.05 | 0.95% | 7,206.82 | 7,585.57 | -0.62% | ||
| France CAC 40 | 7,015.10 | 89.70 | 1.30% | 6,796.21 | 7,157.73 | 8.36% | ||
| Spain IBEX 35 | 8,792.50 | 73.20 | 0.84% | 8,501.20 | 9,100.20 | 6.85% | ||
| Germany DAX 40 | 14,957.23 | 189.03 | 1.28% | 14,458.39 | 15,298.49 | 7.42% | ||
| India BSE Sensex | 57,527.10 | -462.80 | -0.80% | 57,084.91 | 58,418.78 | -5.45% | ||
| China Shanghai Comp | 3,265.65 | 15.10 | 0.46% | 3,231.65 | 3,286.65 | 5.71% | ||
| HK Hang Seng 50 | 19,915.68 | 397.09 | 2.03% | 18,829.11 | 20,118.29 | 0.68% | ||
| Japan Nikkei 225 | 27,385.25 | 51.46 | 0.19% | 26,945.67 | 27,520.97 | 4.95% | ||
| Australia ASX 200 | 6,955.20 | -39.60 | -0.57% | 6,895.00 | 7,032.00 | -1.19% |
Currencies
The US Dollar (USD) looses strength around the world last week as The Fed is being less aggressive in raising rates compared to other Central banks.
| Currency | Week Close | Week Change | Change % | Low | Week Range | High | YTD Performance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CAD Canadian Dollar | 1.3747 | 0.0019 | 0.14% | 1.3631 | 1.3808 | 1.42% | ||
| MXN Mexican Peso | 18.4220 | -0.4890 | -2.59% | 18.3810 | 19.2299 | -5.47% | ||
| COP Colombian Peso | 4,750.23 | -100.27 | -2.07% | 4,722.05 | 4,850.50 | -2.03% | ||
| BRL Brazilian Real | 5.2463 | -0.0331 | -0.63% | 5.2049 | 5.3413 | -0.73% | ||
| GBP British Pound Sterling | 0.8176 | -0.0035 | -0.43% | 0.8101 | 0.8219 | -1.09% | ||
| EUR Euro | 0.9292 | -0.0082 | -0.87% | 0.9149 | 0.9406 | -0.56% | ||
| CHF Swiss Franc | 0.9199 | -0.0061 | -0.66% | 0.9122 | 0.9318 | -0.56% | ||
| CZK Czech Koruna | 22.0019 | -0.5085 | -2.26% | 21.6418 | 22.6430 | -2.51% | ||
| NOK Norwegian Krone | 10.4836 | -0.2223 | -2.08% | 10.2761 | 10.7927 | 6.88% | ||
| SEK Swedish Krona | 10.4244 | -0.0754 | -0.72% | 10.2127 | 10.5429 | -0.12% | ||
| RUB Russian Ruble | 77.28 | 0.32 | 0.42% | 75.22 | 77.71 | 4.79% | ||
| SAR Saudi Riyal | 3.7566 | 0.0002 | 0.01% | 3.7546 | 3.7586 | -0.04% | ||
| AED UAE Dirham | 3.6725 | -0.0004 | -0.01% | 3.6723 | 3.6731 | 0.00% | ||
| INR Indian Rupee | 82.34 | -0.19 | -0.23% | 82.04 | 82.89 | -0.50% | ||
| THB Thai Baht | 34.14 | 0.02 | 0.06% | 33.91 | 34.57 | -1.39% | ||
| SGD Singapore Dollar | 1.3319 | -0.0098 | -0.73% | 1.3232 | 1.3438 | -0.67% | ||
| MYR Malaysian Ringgit | 4.4280 | -0.0575 | -1.28% | 4.4105 | 4.4920 | 0.52% | ||
| CNH Chinese Yuan | 6.8688 | -0.0219 | -0.32% | 6.8093 | 6.9069 | -0.76% | ||
| HKD Hong Kong Dollar | 7.8499 | 0.0002 | 0.00% | 7.8356 | 7.8500 | 0.56% | ||
| KRW South Korean Won | 1,295.89 | -12.89 | -0.98% | 1,276.19 | 1,313.80 | 2.69% | ||
| JPY Japanese Yen | 130.71 | -1.12 | -0.85% | 129.65 | 133.00 | -0.31% | ||
| AUD Australian Dollar | 1.5047 | 0.0121 | 0.81% | 1.4795 | 1.5097 | 2.70% | ||
| NZD New Zealand Dollar | 1.6124 | 0.0172 | 1.08% | 1.5886 | 1.6215 | 2.39% |
* Rates are quoted as the amount of local currency to buy 1 US Dollar.
Commodities
- Average US Regular Gas Price – decreased 3 cents or 0.98% this week to $3.422 a gallon. See more about US Regular Gas Prices.
- EIA Crude Oil Inventories – increased by 1.12M barrels last week compared to prior week decrease of 1.55M
- EIA Natural Gas Inventories – decreased 72 bcf last week compared to prior week decrease of 58 bcf (billion cubic feet)
Construction Materials prices have mixed performance with Steel prices jumping 9.66% now up 55.65% YTD and Lumber prices dropping 8.42% up 10.65% YTD.
| Commodity | Week Close | Week Change | Change % | Low | Week Range | High | YTD Performance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gold | 1,983.80 | 10.30 | 0.52% | 1,936.50 | 2,014.90 | 8.63% | ||
| Silver | 23.34 | 0.88 | 3.90% | 22.29 | 23.71 | -2.92% | ||
| Platinum | 983.90 | 5.30 | 0.54% | 962.20 | 1,008.20 | -9.14% | ||
| Palladium | 1,414.40 | 28.30 | 2.04% | 1,360.50 | 1,463.00 | -21.33% | ||
| Crude Oil | 69.26 | 2.52 | 3.78% | 64.12 | 71.67 | -13.71% | ||
| Natural Gas | 2.3610 | -0.0850 | -3.48% | 2.2400 | 2.5210 | -42.47% | ||
| Lumber | 413.50 | -38.00 | -8.42% | 406.30 | 468.00 | 10.65% | ||
| Steel (HRC) | 1,158.00 | 102.00 | 9.66% | 1,045.00 | 1,167.00 | 55.65% | ||
| Copper | 4.0750 | 0.1825 | 4.69% | 3.8550 | 4.1485 | 6.94% | ||
| Corn | 6.4300 | 0.0875 | 1.38% | 6.2300 | 6.4500 | -5.23% | ||
| Wheat | 6.8850 | -0.2200 | -3.10% | 6.5400 | 7.0850 | -13.07% | ||
| Soybeans | 14.2825 | -0.4825 | -3.27% | 14.0500 | 14.9700 | -6.28% | ||
| Coffee | 1.7925 | 0.0265 | 1.50% | 1.7260 | 1.8285 | 7.14% | ||
| Cattle | 1.5660 | -0.0573 | -3.53% | 1.5530 | 1.6310 | -0.82% | ||
| Lean Hogs | 0.9143 | 0.1155 | 14.46% | 0.7743 | 0.9278 | 4.25% |
Interest Rates
- Federal Funds Effective Rate – was increased this week 25 basis points to 4.83% with the target rate between 4.75-5.00% since the March 22nd, 2023 increase of 25 basis points. See more about the Federal Funds Rate.
- 30 Year Average US Mortgage Rates – decreased this week to 6.42% from 6.60% last week. Learn more about 30 year mortgage rates.
- MBA Mortgage Applications Index – increased by 3.0% this week compared to the prior week increase of 6.5%
| Maturity | Week Close | Week Change | Low | Week Range | High | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US 1 Month | 4.020% | -0.120% | 3.860% | 4.270% | ||
| US 3 Month | 4.649% | 0.249% | 4.371% | 4.766% | ||
| US 1 Year | 4.319% | 0.069% | 4.159% | 4.751% | ||
| US 5 Year | 3.414% | -0.097% | 3.237% | 3.800% | ||
| US 10 Year | 3.376% | -0.054% | 3.289% | 3.646% | ||
| US 30 Year | 3.649% | 0.021% | 3.541% | 3.777% |
Cryptocurrencies
- Total Crypto Market Cap – decreased 2.15% or 25.4B this week to 1,155.6B
- Bitcoin Supply – 6,959 more Bitcoin have been mined this week, the total supply is now 19,327,297 out of the max supply of 21M. The max supply is 92.03% mined.
After a very strong week in cryptos last week, Bitcoin (BTC) cooled off this week basically close out flat, while Ripple (XRP) and Litecoin (LTC) jump 11.96% and 9.60% respectively.
| Rank* | Crypto | Week Close | Week Change | Change % | % of Market** | Low | Week Range | High | YTD Performance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | BTC | 27,493.29 | 69.36 | 0.25% | 45.98% | 26,636.26 | 28,803.34 | 66.15% | ||
| 2 | ETH | 1,752.04 | -40.45 | -2.26% | 18.55% | 1,717.77 | 1,853.89 | 46.40% | ||
| 3 | BNB | 322.36 | -16.72 | -4.93% | 4.40% | 317.60 | 346.45 | 30.85% | ||
| 4 | XRP | 0.4259 | 0.0455 | 11.96% | 1.88% | 0.3734 | 0.4914 | 25.30% | ||
| 5 | ADA | 0.3601 | 0.0096 | 2.74% | 1.08% | 0.3318 | 0.3870 | 46.09% | ||
| 6 | MATIC | 1.0974 | -0.1226 | -10.05% | 0.95% | 1.0743 | 1.2508 | 44.68% | ||
| 7 | DOGE | 0.0747 | -0.0018 | -2.39% | 0.86% | 0.0709 | 0.0789 | 6.25% | ||
| 8 | SOL | 20.68 | -0.95 | -4.39% | 0.69% | 20.36 | 23.83 | 107.63% | ||
| 9 | DOT | 6.0280 | -0.6120 | -9.22% | 0.61% | 5.9640 | 6.7022 | 39.86% | ||
| 10 | LTC | 93.71 | 8.21 | 9.60% | 0.59% | 77.73 | 95.76 | 33.87% |
* Rank is based on market cap of non-stablecoins.
** Represents the % of the total crypto market cap
Other Fascinating Stats
The US National Debt decreased 0.42 billion (Wednesday Mar 15th to Wednesday Mar 22nd), to a total debt of $31,458,378,773,492.71 according to the Treasury Department. The National Debt has surpassed congresses approved debt limit of 31.381 trillion for over 9 weeks now. See the Debt to the Penny.
The number of solar Sunspots (magnetic storms on the surface of the sun) increased this week to 108 from 84 last week, the sun has had 0 spotless days in 2023. See more about Sunspots and space weather.
NASA has cataloged 12 new exoplanets this week keeping the total at 5,312 confirmed and catalogued Exoplanets across 3,981 confirmed Planetary Systems. 71 Exoplanets have been confirmed this year so far and there are 9,269 Exoplanet Candidates being evaluated for confirmation. Learn about all of the Exoplanets from NASA’s Exoplanet Catalog.