Weekly Financial Market Update - August 16, 2019

Domestic equities experienced a choppy week as investors parsed mixed news. The S&P 500 declined 2.9% on Wednesday in response to disappointing economic data from China and Europe that fueled concerns about softer global economic growth. These concerns were exacerbated by the U.S. Treasury yield curve inversion as the 10-year yield moved below the 2-year yield for the first time since 2007. The 10-year yield fell to under 1.60% which marked a multi-year low, and the 30-year yield reached a record low under 2.0% for most of  last Thursday. Yield curve inversion is a closely watched warning sign due to its historical track record of preceding recessions. Former Fed Chair Janet Yellen noted that the economy is still healthy and a curve inversion does not mean a recession is imminent. 

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