From Equity Research
Markets faced significant new challenges and uncertainties in February with the Russian invasion of The war in Ukraine captured market and world attention in March with daily developments swinging global equities and commodities in an already uncertain macro environment. Adding to investor concern has been the inflation and interest rate backdrop with the yield curve inverting. Reflecting this environment, the VIX Index or “fear gauge” spiked at one point early in the month to the high 30s before rolling over to end the month at just over 20. For the full month, major equity indexes were able to finish out in positive territory with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 2.3%, the S&P 500® index up 3.6%, and the smaller cap-weighted Russell 2000® increasing 1.1%.