Weekly Market Update (5/22/09)‏

HEADLINE NEWS WEEK ENDING 5/22/09

Overview
The US Treasury market sold off this week on concerns about a potential downgrade of US government debt by the credit ratings agencies. more...http://payden.com/library/weeklyMarketUpdateE.aspx

US MARKETS
Treasury/Economics
US Treasuries sold off this week pushing 10-year and 30-year Treasuries to their highest yield levels for the year as investors are preparing for the upcoming supply next week in US 2-year, 5-year and 7-year securities. more...http://payden.com/library/weeklyMarketUpdateE.aspx

Large-Cap Equities
The stock market rallied this week on rising energy prices. Crude oil rose to its highest level in six months, ending the week at about $60 a barrel. more...http://payden.com/library/weeklyMarketUpdateE.aspx

Corporate Bonds
Investment grade primary activity continued to rush to the market as issuers were looking to take advantage of improving sentiments and what seems to be a never-ending longing for yield in the credit market. more...http://payden.com/library/weeklyMarketUpdateE.aspx

Mortgage-Backed Securities
The agency mortgage market sold off this week, yet traded very well relative to the Treasury market which saw prices reach six-month lows. more...http://payden.com/library/weeklyMarketUpdateE.aspx

Municipal Bonds
Municipal bond market yields fell over the course of the last week and, in particular, longer maturities continued to outperform the rest of the market. more..http://payden.com/library/weeklyMarketUpdateE.aspx.

High-Yield
After a slight pullback in the high yield market in the preceding week, high yield bonds bounced back nicely, tightening in 55 bps relative to Treasuries and gaining roughly 2% for the week ending May 22. more...http://payden.com/library/weeklyMarketUpdateE.aspx

INTERNATIONAL MARKETS
Western European Equities
Stocks in Western Europe gained ground over the past week. The sectors with the best performance were basic resources (+9.7%) and banks (+8.7%). more...http://payden.com/library/weeklyMarketUpdateE.aspx

Eastern European Equities
The CECE index of equities traded in Central Europe (Czech Republic, Hungary, and Poland) gained +7.5% this week, while the Russian stock index RTS went up +8.2%. more...http://payden.com/library/weeklyMarketUpdateE.aspx

Global Bonds and Currencies
For major sovereign bond markets, the past week brought losses as attention focused on the sharp deterioration in the fiscal positions of the US and the UK. more..http://payden.com/library/weeklyMarketUpdateE.aspx.

Emerging-Market Bonds
Emerging market dollar-pay debt spreads tightened this week. Although risk markets were mixed, the lack of negative economic data and a back-up in US Treasury yields caused credit spreads to move lower. more...

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