The nearly three-month rally in risk assets ended with high drama with a stomach-churning almost 6% slide in the S&P 500 yesterday. Follow-through selling was seen in the Asia-Pacific region, but most markets recovered from their lows, and although losses were still recorded, the downside momentum seemed broken. The same holds true for Europe. Bourses opened lower but by mid-morning had moved higher (~1.4%), and US shares are trading firmer (~2%). The MSCI Asia Pacific Index snapped a two-week advance that saw it rise 9.5% and is off around 3% this week. The Dow Jones Stoxx 600 rose around 13.75% over the past two weeks, and even with today’s gains that snap a four-day slide, it is off about 5.3% this week.
