• The RBA held the overnight cash rate steady at 2.50% in May as expected. The rate was also left unchanged during the June sitting.
• Yields on fixed income securities fell over the month, with the 3 Month Bank Bill Swap Rate and the 10 Year Australian Bond Rate decreasing by -0.06% and -0.29% respectively.
• Australian Shares had a flat month, with the All Ordinaries Price Index and the S&P/ASX 200 Price Index both rising marginally by 0.06%.
• Australian Listed Property followed the broader domestic equities market, with the S&P/ASX 300 Property Price Index adding 0.04% over the month.
• Many of the major global equities markets posted positive returns in May. As stocks in advanced countries continued to perform strongly, Asian shares rallied over the month, with the Hang Seng Price Index rising by 4.28%.
• Commodity prices had an overall negative month, with the US$ CRB Spot Commodity Price Index decreasing by -0.67%. Gold prices were the largest contributor to this loss, declining by -3.24% while oil prices expanded by 3.09% (both measured in USD).
• The Australian Dollar appreciated against most of the major currencies. In particular, it increased by 0.36% against the US Dollar, 2.09% versus the Euro and 1.08% against the British Pound. The Aussie Dollar was largely unchanged over the Japanese Yen.
• The Australian Trade Weighted Index (TWI) rose by 0.14% in May, indicating a further increase in Australia’s international competitiveness.
• US equity market volatility declined by -2.01% for the month, ending the month priced at 11.40%, as measured by the S&P VIX Index.  

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 Source:       Zenith Investment Partners