Stocks lead, bonds sit still

Monday was a clear risk-on day for the stock-based TSP funds. The C Fund gained 1.55% to $109.0912, the I Fund rose 1.26% to $53.7718, and the S Fund added 1.06% to $100.6083. The F Fund slipped 0.05% to $20.7981, and the G Fund edged up 0.03% to $19.4743.

Why the TSP funds moved as they did

The C Fund tracks the S&P 500, which rose 1.54% to 6832.43. A 1.55% gain for the fund against a 1.54% gain for the index is about as tight as it gets.

The I Fund follows the MSCI ACWI ex-US ex-China index. It rose 1.26%, close to the 1.25% gain in VXUS, the broad international ETF. Foreign stocks joined the rally but did not outrun U.S. large caps.

The S Fund tracks the Dow Jones U.S. Completion index, which covers mid- and small-sized U.S. companies. Its 1.06% gain was a step behind the C Fund, so large companies had the better day.

The F Fund follows the Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate bond index. It dipped 0.05%, in line with BND's 0.03% decline. The 10-Year Treasury yield ticked up 0.41% to 4.11, and when yields rise, existing bond prices tend to ease. The G Fund simply earns its Treasury-based rate, so its small gain was routine.

Moves over 1%

Four individual funds cleared 1%: the C, I and S Funds, plus most of the L Funds. The L 2055 through L 2070 Funds each gained 1.37%, the L 2050 rose 1.13%, and the L 2045 rose 1.07%. The L 2040 gained exactly 1.00%, and the L 2035 and L 2030 rose 0.92% and 0.82%. L Income, the most conservative blend, gained 0.40%.

The pattern follows the mix. Longer-dated L Funds hold more stock, so they captured more of the rally. Shorter-dated ones hold more G and F money, which dampened the move.

Despite the jump, the five-day numbers are still slightly negative for the C Fund (-0.26%), the S Fund (-0.39%) and most L Funds. Monday recouped part of a softer stretch rather than setting a new course.

What moved IRA holdings

Most IRAs lean on broad index funds and ETFs, and they all moved together. VTI, the total U.S. stock ETF, rose 1.46% to $334.92. The Nasdaq Composite led the major indexes with a 2.27% gain to 23527.17, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained a more modest 0.81% to 47368.629. That gap suggests growth-oriented and technology-heavy names did more of the lifting than the older, more traditional blue chips. The data supplied does not say what triggered the move, so I will not guess.

VXUS gained 1.25%, and BND slipped 0.03%. Note that the index and ETF figures were provided as the prior session's close, though they line up closely with the TSP moves.

What it means for your plan

A strong day like this feels good, but one session rarely matters for a plan built over decades. The same goes for a bad day. The year-to-date figures tell a longer story: the I Fund is up 28.24%, the C Fund 17.65%, the S Fund 11.29%, the F Fund 6.76% and the G Fund 3.82%.

If you hold a mix of stock and bond funds, today probably nudged your balance higher by a little. If you hold mostly G Fund or L Income, you saw a smaller gain. Neither is a signal to change anything. This is general information, not personal advice, so check your own time horizon and goals before making any move.