Stocks rallied heading into the weekend, with the S&P 500 finishing up 1.6% for the day. Friday’s 1%+ move ended four consecutive days of relative quiet, the longest stretch without a 1% swing (on a closing basis) since a seven day streak in mid-November. We still have had just one week over the past year that did not experience a single 1% swing in the S&P 500.
Why It Matters: Bull markets are characterized by persistent strength, steady progress, and more often, relatively few big swings. That was the case coming off of the COVID lows. 2020 and 2021 saw multiple weeks without a single 1% daily move in the S&P 500. 2022 brought plenty of noise and plenty of volatility. That has persisted as we have moved into 2023. While the week finished on an upbeat note, the pattern of behavior is little changed. Just a month ago we experienced the first full week of 1% swings since March 2020.
