A five percent month. Just about everything is up five percent this month, with the NASDAQ the leader of the pack:
Major Indices this Month
Nasdaq +7.3%
Russell 2000 +6.2%
DJI +5.9%
S&P 500 +5.7%
S&P Midcap +5.5%
This doesn't happen that often: the S&P has been up five percent or more in a month only 10 times since the financial crisis in 2009, according to our partners at Kensho.
What's interesting is what happens in the following month: the S&P is UP 9 of the 10 times. What's more, it's up an average of 2.4 percent.
This is slightly counter-intuitive. You might think that after an unusually strong month the market might take a breather.
That would make sense, but what this data indicates is that a five percent or more rise in one month will not sufficiently exhaust upward momentum.