Equities kicked off the second half of 2025 on a mostly positive note with most indices posting gains in July. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.2%, the S&P 500 added 2.2%, and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 3.7%. Only Developed EAFE Markets had a negative July, shedding 1.4% in the month.
The most defensive and most cyclically-sensitive sectors topped the list for July: Utilities and Technology, which rose 4.9% and 3.8%, respectively. Industrials came in third place with a 3% gain. Six of the ten worst-performing S&P 500 stocks in July were Health Care names, dragging the sector down by 3.2%, making it the worst performer in July.
The Median Sales Price of Existing Homes rose to $435,500 in June, setting a new all-time high for the first time in twelve months. Oil prices spiked further in July following a volatile June; the price of Brent crude spiked 4% in July, while WTI rose 2.3%. The Federal Reserve maintained its key Fed Funds Rate target range of 4.25%-4.50% at the FOMC’s July 30th meeting, but the majority of investors currently anticipate the Fed will cut the target rate by 25 basis points at its next meeting on September 17th.
Treasury yields rose across the board in July, with the exception of the 3-month Treasury Rate which stayed flat MoM at 4.41%. The 2-year Treasury Rate logged the highest monthly increase of 22 basis points. Higher yields across the curve pushed prices of bond funds lower, such as the iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (TLT), which slipped 1.1% in July.
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