From Equity Research
The World Health Organization warned that “The worst is yet to come” as the spread of the coronavirus pandemic appears to be accelerating in the U.S. The potential economic ramifications of an upsurge in the virus weighed on equity markets in late June although for the full month equities advanced broadly. The VIX Index, or “fear gauge” spiked to over 40 mid-month before settling back to near 30 range at month-end. For the full month, all three major equity indexes increased with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 1.7%, the S&P 500® index up 1.8%, and the smaller cap weighted Russell 2000® up 3.4%.