Long Treasuries Led the Week; Energy Remains the Top S&P 500 Sector Year-to-Date
Long Treasuries returned +1.0% for the week. Energy remained the leading S&P 500 sector year-to-date at +40.2% and represented 3.6% of the float-adjusted S&P 500 at the latest weekly observation.
The take
Long Treasuries led the weekly cross-asset ranking, Energy led the S&P 500 sector ranking year-to-date, and S&P 500 participation stood at 67.4% above the 200-day average and 45.3% above the 50-day average.
What is leading, and over what horizon
One row per market exposure, nine horizons across. A move that leads over a day often lags over a decade, and the point of putting them side by side is that you can see which is which.
| Exposure | 1D | WTD | MTD | QTD | YTD | 1Y | 3Y Ann. | 5Y Ann. | 10Y Ann. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. equitiesIVV | U.S. equities, 1 day: down 0.2 percent | U.S. equities, Week to date: up 0.5 percent | U.S. equities, Month to date: up 3.0 percent | U.S. equities, Quarter to date: up 3.2 percent | U.S. equities, Year to date: up 13.5 percent | U.S. equities, 1 year: up 21.0 percent | U.S. equities, 3 years annualised, annualised: up 22.4 percent | U.S. equities, 5 years annualised, annualised: up 13.2 percent | U.S. equities, 10 years annualised, annualised: up 15.3 percent |
| U.S. small companiesIJR | U.S. small companies, 1 day: down 0.8 percent | U.S. small companies, Week to date: down 1.2 percent | U.S. small companies, Month to date: up 0.1 percent | U.S. small companies, Quarter to date: down 1.8 percent | U.S. small companies, Year to date: up 21.7 percent | U.S. small companies, 1 year: up 28.9 percent | U.S. small companies, 3 years annualised, annualised: up 15.6 percent | U.S. small companies, 5 years annualised, annualised: up 7.7 percent | U.S. small companies, 10 years annualised, annualised: up 10.6 percent |
| International developedEFA | International developed, 1 day: down 0.3 percent | International developed, Week to date: down 0.5 percent | International developed, Month to date: up 2.0 percent | International developed, Quarter to date: up 3.7 percent | International developed, Year to date: up 13.9 percent | International developed, 1 year: up 20.8 percent | International developed, 3 years annualised, annualised: up 19.2 percent | International developed, 5 years annualised, annualised: up 9.7 percent | International developed, 10 years annualised, annualised: up 9.4 percent |
| Emerging marketsEEM | Emerging markets, 1 day: down 0.7 percent | Emerging markets, Week to date: up 0.0 percent | Emerging markets, Month to date: up 4.8 percent | Emerging markets, Quarter to date: down 1.9 percent | Emerging markets, Year to date: up 23.4 percent | Emerging markets, 1 year: up 37.1 percent | Emerging markets, 3 years annualised, annualised: up 23.4 percent | Emerging markets, 5 years annualised, annualised: up 8.8 percent | Emerging markets, 10 years annualised, annualised: up 8.3 percent |
| Investment-grade creditLQD | Investment-grade credit, 1 day: down 0.4 percent | Investment-grade credit, Week to date: up 0.4 percent | Investment-grade credit, Month to date: up 0.5 percent | Investment-grade credit, Quarter to date: down 2.2 percent | Investment-grade credit, Year to date: down 3.1 percent | Investment-grade credit, 1 year: up 1.4 percent | Investment-grade credit, 3 years annualised, annualised: up 5.3 percent | Investment-grade credit, 5 years annualised, annualised: down 0.8 percent | Investment-grade credit, 10 years annualised, annualised: up 2.1 percent |
| High-yield creditHYG | High-yield credit, 1 day: down 0.2 percent | High-yield credit, Week to date: up 0.2 percent | High-yield credit, Month to date: up 0.8 percent | High-yield credit, Quarter to date: up 0.7 percent | High-yield credit, Year to date: up 2.4 percent | High-yield credit, 1 year: up 5.1 percent | High-yield credit, 3 years annualised, annualised: up 8.7 percent | High-yield credit, 5 years annualised, annualised: up 3.8 percent | High-yield credit, 10 years annualised, annualised: up 4.6 percent |
| Long-duration TreasuriesTLT | Long-duration Treasuries, 1 day: down 0.3 percent | Long-duration Treasuries, Week to date: up 1.0 percent | Long-duration Treasuries, Month to date: up 1.2 percent | Long-duration Treasuries, Quarter to date: down 3.4 percent | Long-duration Treasuries, Year to date: down 2.4 percent | Long-duration Treasuries, 1 year: up 0.3 percent | Long-duration Treasuries, 3 years annualised, annualised: up 0.1 percent | Long-duration Treasuries, 5 years annualised, annualised: down 8.1 percent | Long-duration Treasuries, 10 years annualised, annualised: down 2.3 percent |
| U.S. aggregate bondsAGG | U.S. aggregate bonds, 1 day: down 0.3 percent | U.S. aggregate bonds, Week to date: up 0.1 percent | U.S. aggregate bonds, Month to date: up 0.5 percent | U.S. aggregate bonds, Quarter to date: down 0.8 percent | U.S. aggregate bonds, Year to date: down 0.1 percent | U.S. aggregate bonds, 1 year: up 2.5 percent | U.S. aggregate bonds, 3 years annualised, annualised: up 4.5 percent | U.S. aggregate bonds, 5 years annualised, annualised: down 0.3 percent | U.S. aggregate bonds, 10 years annualised, annualised: up 1.4 percent |
| GoldGLD | Gold, 1 day: down 3.2 percent | Gold, Week to date: down 3.4 percent | Gold, Month to date: up 10.1 percent | Gold, Quarter to date: up 11.0 percent | Gold, Year to date: up 3.2 percent | Gold, 1 year: up 33.0 percent | Gold, 3 years annualised, annualised: up 32.6 percent | Gold, 5 years annualised, annualised: up 19.7 percent | Gold, 10 years annualised, annualised: up 12.3 percent |
| Broad commoditiesDBC | Broad commodities, 1 day: down 0.2 percent | Broad commodities, Week to date: down 1.5 percent | Broad commodities, Month to date: up 4.6 percent | Broad commodities, Quarter to date: up 15.5 percent | Broad commodities, Year to date: up 37.7 percent | Broad commodities, 1 year: up 46.2 percent | Broad commodities, 3 years annualised, annualised: up 13.4 percent | Broad commodities, 5 years annualised, annualised: up 14.6 percent | Broad commodities, 10 years annualised, annualised: up 9.2 percent |
| Real estateVNQ | Real estate, 1 day: down 0.4 percent | Real estate, Week to date: down 1.3 percent | Real estate, Month to date: down 1.7 percent | Real estate, Quarter to date: up 0.8 percent | Real estate, Year to date: up 12.0 percent | Real estate, 1 year: up 12.6 percent | Real estate, 3 years annualised, annualised: up 10.8 percent | Real estate, 5 years annualised, annualised: up 2.0 percent | Real estate, 10 years annualised, annualised: up 5.0 percent |
Total return, from adjusted closes. Data through Aug 28, 2026. — marks an observation we do not have. Annualised horizons are rates per year; the shorter horizons are cumulative.
Chart of the week
Bar chart of week-to-date total return for fourteen asset-class exposures, ranked highest to lowest. Long Treasuries are highest at 1.0% and Gold is lowest at negative 3.4%.
Source: Adjusted closes via security_measures_latest and security_period_anchor. · Data through Aug 28, 2026
Rates: long Treasuries led the week
- Long Treasuries returned +1.0% for the week, the highest of the fourteen asset-class exposures.
- Intermediate Treasuries returned 0.0% and Short Treasuries −0.1% over the same week. Long Treasuries were +1.2% month-to-date, −3.4% quarter-to-date and −2.4% year-to-date.
Real assets: weekly declines alongside positive longer horizons
- Gold returned −3.4% for the week, the lowest of the fourteen asset-class exposures.
- Gold remained +10.1% month-to-date and +33.0% over twelve months. Broad Commodities returned −1.5% for the week, +15.5% quarter-to-date and +37.7% year-to-date.
Energy: +40.2% year-to-date at 3.6% of the S&P 500
- Energy returned −1.5% for the week and remained the leading S&P 500 sector year-to-date at +40.2%.
- US Large Cap returned +13.5% year-to-date. Energy ranked first among the eleven sectors over twelve months at +51.1% and represented 3.6% of the float-adjusted S&P 500 at the latest weekly observation.
Market conditions
Six neutral readings of the conditions behind the returns. Each states what it measures and where the measurement comes from; none of them is an instruction.
How much of the index is participating, rather than how far the index itself has moved.
Share of S&P 500 constituents trading above their 200-day moving average: 67% of 497 names. 45% are above the 50-day. · security_measures_latest, via editorial run 2026-08-28
Which broad exposures are ahead, and whether that ordering is the same one as a month ago.
Broad Commodities leads the core exposures year to date at +37.7%, unchanged from four weeks ago. 2 of 27 core exposures changed standing between the month-to-date and one-year horizons. · editorial run 2026-08-28, Core Markets lens
How far apart individual securities are, which is a different question from how far the index moved.
The middle half of S&P 500 year-to-date returns spans -3.4% to +26.7%, an interquartile range of 30.1 percentage points. 64% of names sit more than 10% below their peak. · security_period_returns and security_measures_latest, via editorial run 2026-08-28
Three numbers we’re carrying forward
Measurements, not predictions. We will print these again next week beside their new values.
What is the next reading for the share of S&P 500 constituents above their 50-day average?
The August 28 reading was 45.3%, compared with 67.4% above the 200-day average and 35.8% above all three moving averages.
What is the next reading for the share of constituents within 2% of a 52-week high?
The August 28 reading was 12.5%, while the median constituent was 16.5% below its all-time high.
What is the next interquartile range of constituent year-to-date returns?
The August 28 middle half of constituents spanned −3.4% to +26.7%, an interquartile range of 30.1 percentage points.