How markets fared in the first quarter

IN THIS column I look at how the investment markets performed in the first quarter, up until March 31.

- MARTIN HESSE

I do not cover what economists are now referring to as “Trump’s tariff tantrum” or, as also called, “a self-inflicted wound” by former US Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen, and the news that the US government’s tariff announcements and subsequent flip-flops have wreaked on the world’s financial markets. While the US market was already pricing in some tax-tivity, as we’ll see below, we were, on March 31, experiencing a relative calm before the storm.

THE JSE enjoyed a bumper 12 months to the end of March. The FTSE/JSE all-share index (Alsi) closed at 84,237 points, or slightly short from its all-time high of 90 149 points on Wednesday, March 27. It had risen 84 085 points over the month, or 84.095 points on December 31, 2024, and 15.9% from 74 455 points) over 12 months. The Old Mutual Investors’ Fund, quoted in Corion Capital, in their monthly report using data from Morningstar, was up 3.9% for the quarter and 22.9% over the 12 months.