U.S. Stocks BEST PERFORMANCE SINCE 1995 !!!!!

U.S. Stocks Top All Other Assets for First Time Since ’95, By Alexis Xydias and Whitney Kisling - Oct 22, 2012 7:34 PM GMT+0530 U.S. stocks are beating every major asset class for the first time in 17 years even as economic growth weakens and profits rise at the slowest rate since 2009. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index has rallied 14 percent in 2012, beating Treasuries, corporate bonds, commodities, the dollar and equities in Asia and Europe, data compiled by Bloomberg show. The last time that happened, in 1995, the S&P 500 was posting the biggest annual advance of the last five decades. 

With a price-earnings ratio close to today’s level, the index gained another 93 percent in the next 2 1/2 years.For all the concern about unemployment and manufacturing growth, the best assets this year remain American companies after unprecedented steps by the Federal Reserve to support growth. Forecasts for a rebound in the U.S. economy and the central bank’s pledge to keep interest rates near zero for years convinced bulls the S&P 500 will extend gains. Bears say political gridlock will drag down prices after monetary stimulus wears off.“We see good earnings growth and improving economic outlook, we see good equity valuations and easy monetary policy, we see skeptical investors and low positioning in equity assets,” said Max King, a multi-asset strategist at Investec Asset Management in London, which oversees $100 billion. “This is a major green light for equities and the fact that people don’t see it, is great.”

Treasury Returns

Treasuries have returned 3.3 percent in 2012, compared with 9.9 percent for U.S. investment-grade corporate bonds and 14 percent for high-yield debt, based on Barclays Plc index data. The S&P GSCI Index of 24 commodities advanced 1.7 percent, while the Dollar Index (DXY) that measures the U.S. currency against those of six trading partners weakened 0.7 percent.The S&P 500 gained 0.3 percent last week to 1,433.19 following better-than-estimated data on U.S. housing starts and as earnings from Citigroup Inc., Honeywell International Inc. (HON) and Mattel Inc. topped forecasts. Including dividends, the index is up 16 percent this year, led by PulteGroup Inc., Sprint Nextel Co. and Gap Inc., which have risen more than 96 percent. The S&P 500 added 0.1 percent to 1,434.16 at 10:03 a.m. New York time. The bull market will last another year as individuals regain confidence and return to equities after withdrawing money since 2007, according to Laszlo Birinyi, the president of Birinyi Associates Inc. in Westport, Connecticut. Investors have pulled about $100 billion from U.S. stock funds this year and added $250 billion to bond funds, according to data from the Investment Company Institute in Washington....................http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-10-21/u-s-stocks-beating-all-other-assets-for-first-time-since-1995.html