Time to assess COVID-19’s impact

Article Excerpt

The first quarter of 2020 will go down in the history books as one of the most volatile ever recorded. After reaching an all-time high in mid-February, global equities declined precipitously only to bounce at least part way back in late March. At the same time, the price of oil fell to multi-decade lows as Saudi Arabia and Russia disagreed on oil production cuts. Government bonds rallied as the global slowdown in economic activity caused by the COVID-19 virus became evident. At the broad market level, the Vanguard Total World Stocks ETF (VT) lost 22.5% in the three months, the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO) lost 19.9% and the energy-heavy iShares MSCI Canada Equity ETF (EWC) dropped 26.9%. The iShares Emerging Markets ETF (IEMG) also lost 24.7% even though a major component, China, fared relatively well. Oil producers, commodity producers, shipping companies, airlines, hotels, and luxury goods sellers all came under heavy selling pressure. The SPDR S&P Oil and Gas ETF (XOP) lost 65.3% during the quarter, and the iShares Global Mining ETF (PICK)…