1. The Dow Jones Industrial Averages has a 14% drop over the past four weeks is the biggest
October decline since 1987, when the Black Monday crash sent the blue-chip benchmark
down 23% for the month. It had the most down days in a month since August 1973. During an
eight-day losing streak at the beginning of the month, it racked up a total drop of 2,396
points. In October, the Dow kaput is the 15th worst monthly decline since 1900.
2. The S&P 500 has not had such a volatile month since November 1929, as measured by moves
of at least 1% higher or lower. The Dow posted its two biggest point gains on record, climbing
by 936 points on Oct. 13 and by 889 on Oct. 28. But it also posted its second-biggest point
drop on record, of 733 points. By end of the month S&P 500 recorded the 8th worst one-
month decline since 1930 with 16.9% fall.
3. Shares of Germany's Volkswagen set a new standard for huge price moves among non-penny
stocks. The automaker's shares surged 348% on Monday (27th) and Tuesday(28th), to 945
euros ($1,233), giving it a brief run as the largest company in the world by market
capitalization, after hedge funds scrambled to cover their short investments. By the end of the
week, the stock had given back nearly half of those gains.
4. Crude-oil futures closed by end of October with the biggest monthly loss ever in New York.
Crude's front-month contract drop of 32.6%, or $32.83, for the month -- the biggest monthly
decline recorded on Nymex since trading began in 1983. Crude is now more than 54% lower
than its record high of $147.27 hit in July. Year to date, it's lost 29.4%.
5. Gold futures ending October's trading with their worst monthly record since early 1983, as a
strengthening U.S. dollar and fund liquidations pounded the precious metal and other
commodities. Gold for December delivery closed down $20.30 at $718.20 an ounce on the
Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. The metal lost 18% in October, its
biggest percentage loss since February 1983, according to Comex data. Gold is now 28% lower
than its high above $1,000 an ounce hit in March.
6. In other metals, December copper fell 3.3% to $1.8290 a pound, extending its monthly loss to
35%. December silver slid 0.6% to $9.73 an ounce. Silver surrendered 20% this month.
With the fall on commodities and the stock market, the dollar gets a lot of credit. The 7.8%
jumped of the index is the 4th best one-month improvement since 1967. The greenback
gained an astonishing 14.3% against the euro from the close of September to the dollar's peak
a few days ago. Those healthy gains, however, pale next to its advances of 22.3% against the
Canadian dollar and 31.8% against the Australian dollar.
7. The Japanese Yen, another safe-have currency recorded a 16% rise against the the Euro and
7% against the dollar for the month of October.
8. All around the globe stock market went bunkum , with MSCI Word Index loss 19.1% in
October i.e. the largest monthly decline since the Index started in 1969, beating October
1987’s -17.1%). MSCI Emerging Markets Index fall 27.1% , the worst monthly loss since
Russia’s debt default in August 1998.
9. The fall in; London’s FTSE -10.7% while the German’s DAX -14.5%.. In Asia, China’s
Shanghai Composite fall by 24.6%, India’s Sensex -23.9%. The Australian’s all Ordinaries -
14%, Singapore’s STI -23.9%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng -22.5%, Korean’s KOSPI -23.1% and
Tokyo’s Nikkei -23.8%. Our local Bursar comparatively performance better with the Composite
Index fall by only 15.2%.
10. The ringgit performance against other currencies is as per charts below.
Against our major trading partners, the Ringgit appreciated vis-a-vis the Euros and Pounds. The Yen appreciated more markedly versus our Ringgit as compared to the US dollar or the Chinese Renminbi in October. However by late October the ringgit strengthened against the the Yen.
As against the Asian currencies, the Aussie Dollar and the Rupiah fluctuated widely against our Ringgit. The two currencies with the Korean Won suffered badly during the American and European credit crisis.
