SEATTLE, WA — (Marketwire) — 01/04/13 — European equity markets showed positive returns on Wednesday, January 2nd 2013 as reflected by the Russell Eurozone Index, the day after U.S. Congress passed a resolution to avert the so-called “fiscal cliff.” The Russell Eurozone Index reflected a daily return of 2.4%, led by country constituents Greece (3.8%), Finland (3.8%) and Italy (3.6%).
Other world equity markets also performed strongly Wednesday, with positive returns for the Russell U.S. large-cap Russell 1000® Index, U.S. small-cap Russell 2000® Index, Russell Greater China Index and Russell Emerging Markets Index. This follows positive returns for these indexes in 2012.
“By forging a last minute deal to mitigate much of the immediate impact of the fiscal cliff, the White House, Senate, and the Republican-controlled House of Representatives addressed the first (but by no means only) policy challenge in 2013 — and the short-term reaction has been a rally in global risk assets as shown by the indexes to begin the year,” said Stephen Wood, Chief Market Strategist for Russell Investments. “An -all clear sign- is premature as unresolved fiscal issues in the U.S. as well as Europe will keep uncertainty alive in the coming months. As a consequence, we expect to see ongoing volatility and a -risk-on/risk-off- investment environment globally, which may increase the need for a dynamic, multi-asset portfolio approach.”
Please note: Indexes are unmanaged and cannot be invested in directly. Returns represent past performance, are not a guarantee of future performance, and are not indicative of any specific investment. Russell-s publication of the Indexes or Index constituents in no way suggests or implies a representation or opinion by Russell as to the attractiveness of investing in a particular security. Inclusion of a security in an Index is not a promotion, sponsorship or endorsement of a security by Russell and Russell makes no representation, warranty or guarantee with respect to the performance of any security included in a Russell Index.
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