Five anonymised historical charts were dealt to every player. The Monkey Index returned -0.11% across the same tape.
80 desks completed all five charts.
The sudden arrival of Omicron had the market bracing for another costly winter of medical claims, leaving health insurers firmly out of favour. This is the week the panic broke and the buyers stepped back in.
Record wartime budgets had made defence contractors dependable cash cows, but nobody was in a hurry to chase mature industrials with interest rates climbing. The quiet spring drift ran straight out of steam.
China was tapping the brakes on its building boom and the great commodity supercycle was starting to wobble, so traders were bracing for the party to end. A modest winter bounce had kept hope alive, but this was the week the rally ran out of road.
Global supply chain gridlock had handed rail networks immense pricing power, fuelling a relentless autumn charge into the holidays. This is the week the rally finally paused for breath.
Hospital operating theatres were finally clearing their lockdown backlogs, carrying medical device makers into record highs. As the Delta wave began filling beds again, the rally quietly ran out of road.