From Equity Research
During February, equity markets responded positively to improving daily COVID-19 case count trends and the broadening distribution of vaccines amid signs of improving economic news. The VIX Index or “Fear Gauge” which had spiked at the end of January, generally trended down for the month although concerns around rising interest rates appeared to boost the index near month-end. For the full month, the Dow Jones Industrial Average increased 3.2%, the S&P 500® index increased 2.6%, and the smaller cap weighted Russell 2000® increased 6.1%.