Following a steep correction over the first six weeks of 2016 (which saw the S&P 500 decline 12% from its recent peak, hitting a fresh 52-week low), equity markets rebounded in late February and March, with domestic market indexes finishing the quarter up nearly from where they had started.
During the fourth quarter, global equity markets recovered from a sell-off in Q3, though the impact was modest (and from today’s vantage point, short-lived). The S&P 500 index rebounded 7% during Q4, yet barely eked out a positive return for the full year (+1.4% including dividends, the index’s worst performance since 2008).
As we discussed last month, China’s economic slowdown, dithering on interest rates from the US Federal Reserve, and declining commodity prices weighed heavily on financial markets in the third quarter.
Broad equity indexes were essentially flat in the second quarter; the S&P 500 Index (large caps), the Russell 2000 Index (small caps), and the MSCI EAFE Index (international stocks) all advanced less than 1%.
Despite some domestic economic headwinds, Euro-zone tension following January Greek elections, and expectations that the US Federal Reserve (the ‘Fed’) is ready to start raising short-term rates, the US stock market as measured by the S&P 500 managed to eke out a small 1% gain during this year’s first quarter.