Highlights this month include:
- The Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 began the month strong, with the S&P 500 closing at an all-time high on March 7th (1878). Equity markets were choppy for the balance of the month, concluding with both the DJIA and S&P 500 gaining less than 1% (with most of the gains made in the last trading day following Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellin's assurance that short-term rates would not increase earlier than expected). Volatility ticked lower as the S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures index closed the month down 2%.
- Telecom services led among the 10 sectors of the S&P 500, gaining 5%. Though it declined over 1% this month, health care continued to deliver the best sectoral performance over the last 12 months (29%).
Download this month’s U.S. Index Dashboard.
