Five anonymised historical charts were dealt to every player. The Monkey Index returned +0.19% across the same tape.
82 desks completed all five charts.
Streaming was rapidly turning into a global land grab and the market stopped worrying about cash burn, backing subscriber growth at any cost. After a furious spring sprint, the buyers finally paused for breath.
The winter Omicron wave was shelving hospital surgeries and an FDA warning had just hit the diabetes division, so the street thought the selling was far from over. This was the week buyers finally stepped in to stop the rot.
Crude oil had collapsed and cheap fuel had Americans driving record miles, but the market had not yet braced for the coming wave of accident claims. The quiet drift higher rolled on.
The AI boom was soaking up all the market's cash and US hiring was cooling, leaving defensive payroll stalwarts firmly out of favour. After three months of drifting sideways, the sellers took control.
Commercial property was widely tipped as the next domino to fall after the 2008 crash, with the market convinced empty malls and frozen credit would finish off the big landlords. A furious spring rebound hauled the shares off the floor, but this was the week the rally paused for breath.