Investment Perspectives

After a remarkable market rally in 2020-21 that saw investors largely unfazed by the ongoing pandemic, persistent supply chain disruptions and surging inflation have cast a shadow this year on the economic outlook.

The coronavirus pandemic has dominated the investment landscape the past two years. As the U.S. economy rebounded and corporate profits recovered, stock prices surged while interest rates stayed very low. Entering 2022, the focus shifted to the potential threat of inflation and how Federal Reserve policy could hamper growth. Then came Russia’s unconscionable behavior in Ukraine.

Stocks surged last year, reflecting investors’ confidence in the country’s continued healing from the COVID crisis.

Autumn’s approach brought a spate of disquieting headlines, prompting investor angst and choppy financial markets.

Eighteen months after the pandemic slammed into our shores, most Americans have been able to regain a sense of normalcy. 

This year, equity markets have generally continued to rally on signs that the coronavirus will ultimately be contained, prompting hopes of economic healing and, for society, a return to something approaching normalcy.

An investor who had been off the grid, checking only year-end account statements, might conclude that the backdrop has been uneventful, if not favorable.

As summer gives way to autumn, it remains evident that the coronavirus still has the upper hand in many regions around the globe.