The S&P 500 Index (SPY ) posted its fifth straight week of gains Friday as the stock market rallies at the end of 2019. The fund is already up almost 30% for the year and benchmark is expect to post its best year since 1997 where it gains more than 29.6%. This year-end rally in December has ushers the U.S. equity indexed to historic levels and within reach of the market's best calendar year in more than two decades. The Nasdaq Composite Index (QQQ ) topped 9,000 mark for the first time ever this week, due to the tech-heavy holiday season led by industry giant Amazon's (AMZN ) record holiday shopping season. The fund has had a growth of almost 40% for the year.
ETFs on the move this week:
Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLF ) has been riding high this week on the backs on big banks gaining after strong consumer spending numbers posted this week. Mastercard (MA ) data showed holiday retail spending increase 3.4% In the past six month, this ETF has risen 13%. For the year, this sector fund is almost up +30% for the year to date and is poised to close the year out even stronger. SPDR S&P Retail (XRT ) gained well during the holiday this week as well, with a weekly return of 1.49% and the fund increasing almost 13% from last year.
Big credit card holder stocks like Citigroup (C ), JPMorgan Chase (JPM ), Wells Fargo (WFC ) and Visa (V ) have posted strong growth this week due to consumer spending numbers. Investors can cash in on the growth with the ETFMG Prime Mobile Payments ETF (IPAY ).
The global financials sector, however, has come into focus as big banks have begun a large-scale purge of jobs to combat the slowing global economy and adapt to the rise in digital technology. More than 50 global lendrs have announce plans to slash a total of 77,780 jobs, with Morgan Stanley (MS ) and Deutche Bank (DB ) leading the pack. This round of of job cuts is the largest in four year, most since 91,448 in 2015. Relevant ETFs include: iShares MSCI Europe Financials Sector Index (EURN ); Invesco Global Listed Private Equity Portfolio ETF (PSP ); Direxion Shares ETF Trust(EUFL ); Davis Fundamental ETF Trust (DFNL ); iShares Global Financials (IXG ).
KraneShares' CSI China Internet ETF (KWEB ) is offers a way for investors to take part in the large growth of China's online consumer growth. The fund has grown over 30% for the year and is a mix of U.S. and China listed stocks like Alibaba (BABA ), Tencent (TCEHY ), Meituan Dianping (MPNGF ), and JD.com (JD ).
United States Oil Fund (USO ) jumped this week +2.18% and almost 34% from last year. Oil has increased due to a more positive outlook toward U.S. and China trade deal expectations, making a full month of gains for the fund. Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLE ) as a whole has been having a steady climb in December after its rocky year, but the sector is far behind the growth of its peers; only gaining about 8% for the year whereas most sector ETF returns are in the double digits.
