Following the precipitous falls in global equity markets in the September quarter, equity markets of the major developed economies of the US and Europe recovered significantly over the December quarter as concerns over the European sovereign debt issues were ameliorated by a flurry of discussions and activity of EU organisations aimed at staving off a collapse of the Euro.  In Asia, equity performance was more mixed, with Chinese and Indian equity indices falling by a further 6% to 7% for the quarter.

In Australia, the S&P ASX200 Index increased by a modest 1.2% over the December quarter as most industry sectors achieved positive returns for the quarter.  The main drags on the index for the quarter were Consumer Staples and, more significantly, Materials where returns for the quarter were around -3% reflecting fears of recession in Europe and lower growth in China.  We note however that Materials and Energy stocks have performed especially strongly over the past 3 weeks with returns of 10.0% and 8.0% respectively as more encouraging economic data has emerged.

To read more, click here for a PDF version of this report: Quarterly Economic and Market Commentary

Wayne R Morgan B.Sc. (Hons), Grad. Dip. App. Fin & Invest, F Fin, FPA(Aff)

Managing Director and Representative

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