2026 Q1 Quarterly Investment Report
An excerpt from our Q1 2026 Quarterly Investment Report:
The fog of war enveloped markets in March, casting a pall over what had been a favorable start to the year for global equity markets. Oil markets experienced wild intra-day swings and spiking prices. Faced with uncertainty over the ultimate duration and impact of the war on output, inflation, and resource availability, global equities closed down for the quarter. Shifts in the U.S. Treasury yield curve suggested market hopes that the stagflationary shock of the Iran war would be short-lived. Major central banks kept their policy rates unchanged but struck a hawkish note. The U.S. dollar appreciated but not by as much as might have been expected for the world’s ultimate reserve asset. Gold prices plummeted. Oil and other commodity prices soared, as the closure of the Strait of Hormuz disrupted trade in a broad range of key commodities. Shortages of jet and diesel fuel emerged in Asia and Europe. Regular U.S. gasoline prices rose by 36%. Diesel was up 46%.
