iQUANT Weekly Market Pulse

For the Week Ending August 21, 2026

Markets Overview

U.S. equities retreated for the week, with the S&P 500 closing at -1.37%. Large caps outperformed small caps by 0.71 percentage points, though both finished negative. Sector breadth showed narrow, with 3 of 10 sectors advancing. International markets outshone domestic equities, returning +2.24% on average — a 3.61pp premium over the S&P 500. LatAm and Africa led international strength. Fixed income offered modest support, returning +0.02% for the week. Commodities were a standout mover, with broad commodities jumping +4.28%. The dollar softened modestly (-0.75%). Bitcoin was the week's most dramatic mover, rallying +24.39%.

Index Performance Detail

Value stocks did better than growth in a down week, falling 0.36% versus growth's 2.22% loss.

Large Cap

Core-1.37%

Value-0.36%

Growth-2.22%

Mid Cap

Core-2.42%

Value-1.74%

Growth-3.02%

Small Cap

Core-2.08%

Value-1.60%

Growth-2.58%

Sector Performance

Sector weakness prevailed as a majority of groups posted losses. Technology led the decline with a loss of +3.53%, though Healthcare provided limited support at +4.33%.

Cyclical

Materials+1.90%

Cons. Disc.-0.15%

Financials-1.17%

Sensitive

Energy+2.79%

Telecom-1.37%

Industrials-3.36%

Technology-3.53%

Defensive

Healthcare+4.33%

Cons. Staples-0.12%

Utilities-3.48%

International Markets

Africa led the way internationally, up +6.99%. That beat the S&P 500 by 8.35pp. South Africa was the bright spot, up +7.37%. Only 3 of 4 regions had gains.

Region

Week

Africa+6.99%

LatAm+3.21%

Europe+0.30%

Pacific-1.54%

Top 3 Countries

South Africa+7.37%

Peru+5.99%

Hong Kong+4.29%

Bottom 3 Countries

Japan-3.09%

France-0.99%

South Korea-0.78%

Fixed Income & Bonds

Core bonds finished at -0.13%. High yield outperformed at -0.13%, while emerging market bonds were at -0.35%.

Bond Performance

US Core Bond-0.13%

International Bonds+0.67%

Emerging Debt-0.35%

High Yield-0.13%

Credit Spread Analysis

Core vs High Yield

-0.01pp

Best Performer

International Bonds: +0.67%

Commodities

Commodities finished at +4.28%. Energy was the best performer at +6.03%, while Base Metals struggled at +0.51%.

All Commodities

Broad Commodities+4.28%

Agriculture+1.98%

Base Metals+0.51%

Energy+6.03%

Precious Metals+6.00%

Range & Volatility

Material Moves

Energy+6.03%

Precious Metals+6.00%

Broad Commodities+4.28%

Spread (High–Low)

5.52%

Currencies & Digital Assets

The dollar lost +0.75% this week. British Pound was the strongest performer while US Dollar Index lagged.

Currency Performance

US Dollar Index-0.75%

Euro+0.94%

Japanese YenFlat

British Pound+1.13%

Digital Assets

Bitcoin (BTC)+24.39%

Ethereum (ETH)+33.75%

Solana (SOL)+24.33%

XRP+45.67%