Returns of Assets, Sectors and Countries Going Into the Fourth Quarter

Below we provide charts and tables of the returns for pretty much everything in September, the third quarter, and year to date.  As shown, Oil and Gold were the best performing assets throughout Q3.  Black gold (oil) was up 15.53% while yellow gold was up 14.12%.  The US Dollar took the biggest hit in Q3, declining 5.13%.  Not surprisingly, Energy was the best performing US sector, while Financials and Consumer Discretionary were the only two that saw declines.  China was the best performing country of the ones listed below, gaining 45% from July through September.  The single digit gains that US markets saw in the third quarter were pretty good compared to other countries.  Japan, France and Italy saw the biggest declines.