October Market Digest 2023

In October, we saw negative equity returns due to events in Gaza and central banks' "higher for longer" stance impacted portfolios.

• October brought negative returns for the majority of asset classes, especially equities as market sentiment was impacted by events in Gaza.
• Central banks continued their “higher for longer” messaging; as a result bond markets adjusted their expectations leading to higher yields which hurt prices (prices fall as yields increase).
• Given these market conditions, portfolios typically generated a negative absolute return over the month. Despite falling, bonds fared relatively better than equities over the period, dampening losses for lower risk portfolios.

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