It’s been a volatile year so far for many exchange traded funds (ETFs), and July was no exception. The Dow Jones industrial average finished exactly even. The Nasdaq lost 0.7%, while the S&P 500 fell 1.4% for the month.
After skyrocketing prices for much of the year, oil’s downhill slide dominated the news for much of the month. It closed the month at $124.08 a barrel, an 11.4% loss from the beginning of the month.
The price of gas fell southward, too, to a national average of $3.909 a gallon for a loss of 4.3% in July.
Mostly dour news from the financial sector continued to come in as earnings were reported. Many banks reported a loss, but the upshot is the losses weren’t as bad as many analysts had expected in most cases.
Click here to view the full ETF performance report and see how the different asset classes, sectors and global regions performed for the month.
The opinions and forecasts expressed herein are solely those of Tom Lydon, and may not actually come to pass. Information on this site should not be used or construed as an offer to sell, a solicitation of an offer to buy, or a recommendation for any product.