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The small cap index was bettered by the major indexes on Friday which managed a close in the green on Friday. The S&P500 was down for the week, snapping a weekly winning streak that started back in November… hmmm.

Stocks had a rough session, closing at their lows, as an ADP jobs report came in hotter than expected. Bond yields have been relentlessly climbing, forcing weak hand holders to sell, accentuating the decline.

Stocks took a bit of a beating yesterday as exhausted bulls watched some of their late-2023 gains melt away. There are still 8.8 million job vacancies in the US, still quite high by historical standards.

Stocks, still recovering from last month’s celebrations, limped into the new year with losses. Manufacturing slipped further into contraction territory according to the latest PMI revision from S&P Global.

Stocks dipped on the last trading day of the year as the bulls punched out early to head to the pub for a well-deserved toast. 2023 was anything but a straight line, but few could argue that the results should be placed in the “win” column.