March 2025 Market Update

Overview

The first quarter of 2025 proved to be a counter-weight to 2024, with emerging and European markets out-performing the US, despite previous discussions of US exceptionalism.

The outturn was that UK investors saw a total return of -6.7% during March resulting in a -6.0% outcome over the first quarter, held back partly by a rallying pound sterling.

Sentiment was weighed down by signs of a weakening US economy, as trade wars launched by the new presidential administration eroded both consumer and business confidence – pushing consumer sentiment to multidecade lows. While many hope the turbulence will be short-lived - with the potential for tariff rollbacks - concerns have surfaced that the deteriorating sentiment is already dampening investment spending.

Emerging markets led global performance in March, posting a modest 0.7% monthly gain and rising 2.4% gain over the first quarter, with a notable rebound in Chinese equities following a period of underperformance.

Full update below…