August largely preserved July’s benign market conditions, characterized by tight credit spreads, subdued volatility, and broad-based gains. Market breadth improved as the S&P 500 set new highs while megacap technology underperformed (+1.4%) and small caps advanced strongly; Japan and China outperformed, whereas Europe was comparatively subdued. Dollar weakness supported non-US
The benign markets of July continued into August, with financial conditions remaining accommodating, reflected in historically tight credit spreads and low levels of volatility, the MOVE and VIX indices of bond and equity market volatility bumping along lows for the year. Global developed world equities returned 2.6% in August and
Markets remained stable in July 2025 despite trade uncertainty, as the US secured favorable tariff deals with Japan, the EU, and the UK, boosting its political and economic position. Strong US economic data, upbeat corporate earnings especially in AI and expectations of future rate cuts supported equities, with tech stocks
Despite the uncertainty created by Donald Trump’s looming 1st August deadline for completion of tariff deals, July proved to be a relatively benign month in markets. In large part this was due to rising optimism that most key deals would be concluded before month end, avoiding worst-case outcomes, optimism which
A quarter which began with Trump’s Liberation Day reciprocal tariffs announcement, delivering a seismic shock to global financial markets and one of the sharpest two-day falls on record on Wall Street, ended with a few equity market indices at all-time highs. In between were threats to remove Powell as Chair
A quarter which began with Trump’s Liberation Day reciprocal tariffs announcement, delivering a seismic shock to global financial markets and one of the sharpest two-day falls on record on Wall Street, ended with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq indices at all-time highs. In between were threats to remove Powell as
The topsy-turvy tariff saga again dominated markets, but increasingly with a ‘TACO’ theme: Trump Always Chickens Out. De-escalation of tariff concerns along with a stream of positive AI related news underpinned risk assets in May, despite a mid-month wobble as debt sustainability concerns triggered a rise in bond yields, especially
The topsy-turvy tariff saga again dominated markets, but increasingly with a ‘TACO’ theme: Trump Always Chickens Out. De-escalation of tariff concerns along with a stream of positive AI related news underpinned risk assets in May, despite a mid-month wobble as debt sustainability concerns triggered a rise in bond yields, especially
In April US equities returned -0.7%, global developed equites 0.9%, emerging markets 1.3%, US Treasuries 0.6%, global government bonds 3.3% and gold 5.3% - seemingly nothing out of the ordinary, but market moves over the month mask traumatic day-to-day volatility amidst chaotic US policy making and deepening uncertainty, as the