From Equity Research
Equity markets surged higher during August despite the challenging backdrop created by the COVID-19 pandemic. Investors cheered on gains in a select group of leading technology companies that have been at the core of the market rebound seen this year. Concerns in August around the progress of the virus and increasing civil unrest appeared to have been largely shrugged off by investors with the VIX Index, or “fear gauge,” moving up only slightly from about 24.5 at the start of the month to end at about 25.6. For the full month, all three major equity indexes increased with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 7.6%, the S&P 500® index up 7.0%, and the smaller cap weighted Russell 2000® up 5.5%.
From Davenport Asset Management
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