Bear Stearns High Yield Index resumes upward track, rising 0.58% in week

New York, Dec. 20 - The Bear Stearns High Yield Index resumed its upward course in the week ending Dec. 19, rising 0.58%.

The gain comes after a fall of 0.16% the previous week, which broke an eight-week winning run.

However the index will need to post solid gains in the less than two weeks of the year remaining in order to finish 2002 with a positive return. For Jan. 1 through Dec. 19, the index's return is negative 1.30%.

Eight of the 11 industry sectors making up the index showed gains for the most recent week.

Leading the gains was utilities, which added 3.37%, cutting its year-to-date loss to 18.46%.

Weakest was finance, which dropped 0.86% in the week and is now up 3.88% so far this year.

Consumer cyclicals is placed first for 2002 so far with a return of 10.62% after slipping 0.02% in the most recent week. With the number-two sector, capital goods-manufacturing, at 8.65%, consumer cyclicals look set to be the year's best performing sector.

Telecommunications remains in last place year-to-date with a return of negative 34.11% despite adding 1.84% in the most recent week. This sector looks set to take 2002's wooden spoon since the next worst performing group, transportation, is down a far smaller 18.67%.

Among the narrow sub-sectors making up the 11 broad industry groups, the best performer in the most recent week was convenience and drug retailers, which jumped 10.22% and is now up 16.15% so far this year. (Utilities is not sub-divided.)

For the year so far "other consumer non-cyclicals" is still in first position, up 21.17% after adding 0.67% in the week just completed.

The past week's worst performer was insurance, down 2.95% and now 8.63% lower year to date.

Long distance remains in last place for the year so far with a 69.63% loss after rising 1.40% in the week to Dec. 19.

For the week, the index's yield to worst fell 29 basis points to 12.63% from 12.92% seven days earlier. The yield-to-worst spread shrank 21 basis points to 958 basis points from 979 basis points the week before.

The index's overall market value rose to $339.348 billion in 1,477 issues, more value but fewer issues than $337.861 billion in 1,481 issues a week earlier.

© 2015 Prospect News.
All content on this website is protected by copyright law in the U.S. and elsewhere. For the use of the person downloading only.
Redistribution and copying are prohibited by law without written permission in advance from Prospect News.
Redistribution or copying includes e-mailing, printing multiple copies or any other form of reproduction.