Hey Everyone, Since it's the start of a new year, I wanted to take the opportunity to reintroduce myself, share my goals for this newsletter, and ask for feedback and input so that I can tailor the content to your needs. I am an entrepreneur, lawyer, and investor who has been writing the Inside Business newsletter since 2020. I am also the former Managing Editor here at Inside.com. I previously founded a high-growth technology startup and led it to a $30M valuation before leaving. Since then, I've focused on providing resources and information to entrepreneurs to help lower barriers for those trying to innovate and improve society. Currently, that entails writing the Inside Business and Inside Marketing newsletters. I also build services that automate contract drafting and run my own law practice, representing startup companies in high-growth industries, primarily SaaS, crypto, and fintech.
As an Inside Business subscriber, you will receive two newsletters per day during the week and one a day on the weekend. Every weekday morning, you will get my Market Outlook; this will look at the major trends and stories in the U.S., Canadian, European and Asian markets, as well as currency, commodity, and cryptocurrency news. Each weekday evening, you will receive a roundup of the top news stories for the day written by Vanessa Omeokachie. On weekends, I will send the Stocks To Watch newsletter, discussing 14-20 stocks to keep an eye on as you consider your own investments and portfolio. I've had the privilege of meeting many of our subscribers and look forward to connecting with more of you in the coming year. The easiest way to get in touch with me is through Twitter. Please reach out with any requests, suggestions, and feedback so I can continue to improve my newsletters. Onward and Upward, Liam |
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US Markets Stocks fell on Friday as Wall Street ended its worst year since the Great Recession. - The S&P 500 lost 19.4% in 2022, and it's down more than 20% from its all-time high, putting it firmly in a bear market.
- The Nasdaq fell 33.1% on the year and the Dow dropped 8.8%.
- Despite the negative annual figures, the Dow gained 15.4% in Q4 and the S&P rose 7.1%. However, December was a bad month, with the Dow falling by 4.17% and the S&P 500 losing 5.9%.
- The Nasdaq lost 1% in Q4, meaning it fell in all quarters of 2022.
- Energy gained 59% in 2022. Aerospace and defense were also among the few sectors that saw gains.
- The worst-performing sector in the S&P 500 was Communications Services, which fell by 40%.
- The Russell 2000 was down 21.56% on the year but gained 5.8% in Q4.
- The current 10 Year U.S. Treasury yield is set at 3.87950%
| Dow Jones | 33,147.25 | -0.22% | | S&P 500 | 3,839.50 | -0.25% | | Nasdaq | 10,466.48 | -0.11% | | Russell 2000 | 1,761.25 | -0.28% | *Stock Market data as of the last closing bell. Data received directly from the reference indexes through ICE Data Services. Do you not understand any of these figures? Check out our explainer.
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Canadian Markets The TSX finished 2022 in the red, capping a negative and volatile year for the index. - Unlike U.S. stocks, the TSX rose in early 2022, hitting its all-time high in July, when U.S. markets had already dropped more than 10%. However, the index saw losses in the second half of the year, and ended 2022 with an 8.5% drop.
- Like every other year since WW2, Canadian stocks outperformed their U.S. counterparts, despite a high inflation environment and an economic slowdown.
- The TSX was held back by healthcare, tech, and real estate stocks, but the rest of the index performed surprisingly well, better than most analysts had predicted at the start of 2022.
*Canadian stock prices are as of the last close. Data received directly from the references indexes through ICE Data Services
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European Markets 2022 was the worst year for European stocks since 2018. - The Stoxx 600 lost 12.76% in 2022, slightly better than the 13.24% decline in 2018.
- The losses canceled out some of the gains from 2021, when the Stoxx 600 surged 22.25%.
- The FTSE 250, which is focused on U.K. stocks, lost 19.5% in 2022, its biggest drop since 2008.
| Euro STOXX 50 | 3,793.62 | -1.47% | | UK (FTSE 100) | 7,451.74 | -0.81% | | Germany (DAX) | 13,923.59 | -1.05% | | France (CAC 40) | 6,473.76 | -1.52% | *European stock prices are as of 7 am ET. Data received directly from the reference indexes through ICE Data Services.
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Asian Markets Stocks in Asia were mixed on Friday, capping a volatile year that saw national indexes deviate significantly, based on local factors such as monetary policies, COVID-19 restrictions, and inflation rates. - South Korea's Kospi index was down 25% on the year, its worst performance since 2008.
- The Sensex in India rose 4.4% on the year, the only major index in a major economic power to rise in 2022.
- The Shanghai Composite and Hang Seng both lost 15% in 2022.
- Japan's Nikkei fell by 9.4% on the year.
- Stocks in Australia lost 5.5% in 2022.
| S&P Asia 50 | 4,428.31 | -0.79% | | Japan (Nikkei 225) | 26,094.50 | 0.00% | | South Korea (KOSPI) | 2,236.40 | -1.93% | | China (Hang Seng) | 19,781.41 | 0.20% | | India (SENSEX) | 60,840.74 | -0.48% | *Asian stock prices are as of 7 am ET. Data received directly from the reference indexes through ICE Data Services.
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Commodities Oil rose on Friday as oil markets ended 2022 with annual gains for the second consecutive year. - Oil markets were volatile in 2022, with prices surging to 14-year highs in March, after Russia invaded Ukraine, before slowly declining in the following months.
- Brent crude gained 3% on Friday and 10% in 2022. Brent surged 50% in 2021.
- U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude gained 2.4% on Friday to close 2022 with a 7% increase. WTI soared 55% in 2021.
| Oil (NYSEARCA:OIL) | 30.50 | 2.31% | | Gold (NYSEARCA:GLD) | 169.64 | 0.47% | | Silver (NYSEARCA:SLV) | 22.02 | 0.23% | | Corn (NYSEARCA:CORN) | 26.93 | -0.11% | | Lumber (NASDAQ:WOOD) | 72.44 | -1.15% | *Commodity prices are as of 7 am ET. Data from MarketWatch. To understand why investors track the prices of these commodities, click here.
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Currency Exchange Rates The U.S. Dollar gained 7.9% in 2022, its best annual performance since 2015. Most other major currencies saw losses last year. - The USD saw most of the gains in the first three quarters but dropped significantly in Q4.
- The Euro (-5.9%), the British Pound (-10.8%), the Australian Dollar (-6.4%), and the Chinese Yuan (-8.7%) all saw annual losses in 2022.
| UK(GBP) | £0.83 | 0.00% | | Europe (EURO) | €0.93 | 0.00% | | Canada (Canadian Dollar) | $1.36 | -0.10% | | Japan (Yen) | ¥130.98 | -0.11% | *Exchange rates as of 7 am ET. Data from Morningstar Financial Research. To understand why we track these currencies and the differences between them, click here.
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Cryptocurrency Bitcoin lost 64% in 2022 as the crypto winter continues, with several major players filing for bankruptcy in recent months. - Some investors are looking for opportunities in the market. Cathie Wood is making a big play for Coinbase shares and BlackRock is providing a lifeline for Core Scientific.
- Italy has approved a 26% tax on crypto gains that will start this year.
- The FTX saga will continue to dominate headlines in the coming months as customers are engaged in a legal battle to have their holdings on the platform recognized as their property instead of assets belonging to FTX.
| Bitcoin | $16,602.40 | 0.01% | | Ethereum | $1,201.53 | 0.50% | | Litecoin | $71.14 | 1.85% | | Bitcoin Cash | $97.39 | 0.82% | *Exchange rates as of 7 am ET. Data from Morningstar Financial Research. To understand why we track these currencies and the differences between them, click here.
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 |  | Liam Gill is a founder, lawyer and investor.
He previously founded Fumarii Technologies, which became a top 20 ranked cloud computing service (Yahoo Finance! 2019) valued at over $30M. He holds an LLB Laws (UK), MSc Management and Master of Laws and currently practices law in Vancouver, Canada.
|   | | Editor | Eduardo Garcia is a writer and editor based in New York. He is the author of "Things You Can Do," an illustrated book about climate action. Bylines in The New York Times, The Guardian, Slate, Scientific American, and others. In one of his previous lives, Eduardo worked as a Reuters correspondent in Latin America for nearly a decade. | |
