Equity markets: equities take hits
Global equity markets remained on the defensive in February. Indexes in most regions (US, emerging markets, Europe) fell about 3% in euro terms, following a difficult January in which the US S&P 500 index suffered its biggest monthly decline since March 2020. In the US, the energy sector was the only one able to end the month on a positive note after rising nearly 19% in January. The stock prices of the major US technology companies fell (FAAMG+T), except for Amazon (+2.7%). The cloud (-9.3%), social media (Facebook -32.6%), investment banking (Morgan Stanley -11.5%), and automotive (Ford -13.5%, GM -11.4%, Tesla -7.1%) sectors performed the worst in the US market.
In February, markets were concerned about the Fed's more aggressive tone after inflation and wages came in higher than expected in January. Because of that high inflation, several members of the Fed remained supportive of a quick start to rate hikes. In addition, the Russian operation in Ukraine weakened global stock prices at the end of the month. The Russian offensive in Ukraine also caused turmoil in bond, commodity, and currency markets.
|
MSCI EMU NR | -5.2% | -4.0% | -8.5% | 9.3% |
MSCI EUROPE NR | -3.0% | -0.9% | -6.1% | 15.4% |
MSCI USA NR | -3.2% | -4.7% | -7.3% | 23.1% |
MSCI JAPAN NR | -1.3% | -4.2% | -5.0% | 2.7% |
MSCI EM. MARKETS NR | -3.2% | -2.8% | -3.6% | -3.5% |
MSCI AC WORLD NR | -2.8% | -3.5% | -6.2% | 16.5% |