Lower U.S. interest rates boosted stocks worldwide in November, with all 22 developed markets followed by Morgan Stanley Capital International showing gains. The MSCI World Index rose 5.5% last month, while EAFE - minus the U.S. and Canadian markets' strong performance - gained 3.8%. The Emerging Markets Free Index of 26 countries increased 1.6%.
The best-performing developed markets in November were Finland and Spain, tied at 8.2%, while Hong Kong returned 7.9%. The U.S. stock market returned 7.4%, while Canada gained 7.1%. Switzerland, hurt by the strength of the Swiss franc, rose only 0.8%. The strongest developed markets year to date are Sweden (34.4%), Canada (31%) and Hong Kong (29.9%).
Among emerging markets, China (11.5%), Indonesia (8.8%) and Argentina (6.7%) were the top performers in November. Year to date, the strongest emerging market is Venezuela (116.1%). Thailand lagged the emerging markets pack, with a return of -29.8%.
