Global Markets and Economic Update

FOREIGN STOCK MARKETS

Stock index trends in native currencies and in dollars adjusted for currency fluctuations. The dollar-adjusted returns are what U.S. investors would realize.

Last week Year to Date Market Native In dollars Native In dollars Argentina +3.4% +3.3% +16.2% +15.8% Australia +1.7 +2.2 +20.5 +17.3 Brazil +12.4 +5.1 +1,152.7 +64.3 Canada +0.6 +0.9 +13.3 +9.1 Chile +0.5 +0.5 +12.5 +5.2 France +4.1 +4.5 +20.3 +13.6 Germany +0.6 +1.4 +23.7 +19.9 Hong Kong +0.2 +0.2 +31.5 +31.3 Indonesia +7.2 +7.0 +62.2 +59.6 Italy +3.0 +2.6 +52.4 +40.8 Japan +1.9 +1.4 +26.7 +52.3 Korea -7.1 -6.9 +0.9 -1.8 Malaysia +2.4 +2.5 +36.6 +40.3 New Zealand -2.1 -1.9 +35.8 +45.9 Singapore +0.8 +0.9 +21.3 +23.9 Spain +5.3 +6.2 +48.4 +25.6 Taiwan -1.7 -1.6 +15.9 +9.3 Thailand +1.3 +1.4 +10.6 +12.3 U.K. +1.7 +0.5 +11.6 +9.8 U.S. +1.2% +6.3%

Source: Morgan Stanley Capital International

MEXICAN STOCKS

The Bolsa index closed marginally lower Tuesday after Monday’s 1.6% dive. After hitting a record 1,941.36 last Thursday, the Bolsa has weakened amid profit taking related to new worries about the North American Free Trade Agreement.

On Tuesday, the Clinton Administration said NAFTA legislation will go to Congress by Sept. 15. In Washington, AFL-CIO leader Lane Kirkland called the chances for defeating NAFTA “good.” “We’ll go for broke” to kill it, he said.

Meanwhile, the Mexican market is also bracing for a slew of new stock offerings this fall, including Coca-Cola Femsa and Ahmsa, the country’s biggest steelmaker.

Source: D.A. Campbell Co.

SPOTLIGHT: MALAYSIA

Malaysia’s economy has grown rapidly in recent years, but a government effort to control inflation is expected to slow the rate of growth in 1993. The export-oriented economy may also be restrained by a slowdown in world trade and a labor shortage in certain sectors, brought about by nearly full employment nationwide.

Sources: Bank of America; World Information Services