Through the first quarter of 2020 fixed income markets have withstood historic volatility. Our investment team reviews actions taken by the Fed, corporate and muni activity, and what our expectations are going into the second quarter.

The first quarter of 2020 closed with a bang. Our investment team reviews the equity markets performance with a deep dive into sector activity.

With the threat of additional cases of coronavirus globally, and investors adopting a risk off mentality over the past week, it is important to take a step back and put these recent events in context.

With high expectations for a re-acceleration of Chinese growth as the backdrop, investors grappled with the potential ramifications of the coronavirus outbreak, and what - if any actions should be taken to protect against the unknown impact.

Twenty-nineteen was a banner year for most asset classes and fixed income was no different. Broad bond market annual returns, as measured by the US Aggregate Bond Index, were the third highest in the last 20 years and occurred even with rates at relatively low levels.

2019 proved to be an exceptional year for investors, as all major asset classes posted positive returns, led by strong equity markets on the back of continued economic growth and easy money.

After four years of discord in Washington D.C., the 2020 elections are at hand – and could bring changes for the economy and policy.

U.S. equities didn’t waiver as fears of a weakening consumer were cast aside, the Fed remained firm on their monetary policy stance and investors may want to look to Europe for opportunity, this and more in this month’s CIO note.

With the Fed concluding their "mid-cycle adjustment" and the U.S. economy showing signs of new life, risk markets are poised to perform well through the remainder of 2019.

As of the end of the September quarter, the S&P 500 price index was up almost 19% year-to-date. While impressive, it is the result of calendar timing following the substantial decline last December. The trailing twelve-month price return is 2%. The sideways move in the market is consistent with the sideways move in earnings per share (EPS) since the June quarter 2018.