Virtus Seix U.S. Government Securities Ultra-Short Bond Fund
Virtus Investment Partners·2026-06-12·via All Articles on Seeking Alpha
Summary
Oil markets responded to geopolitical tensions as front-month futures pricing for West Texas Intermediate ((WTI)) rose 13.6% in January.
New AI tools proved to be particularly challenging for software stocks, bringing that sector's year-to-date decline to -20.8% by the end of February.
The pivot to an outright conflict in the Middle East drove West Texas Intermediate ((WTI)) oil futures up over 76% for the quarter, the largest gain since 1990.
Inflationary fears pushed interest rates up, and the likelihood of additional rate cuts from the U.S. Federal Reserve ((Fed)) were summarily priced out.
Douglas Rissing/iStock via Getty Images
Market Review
The conflict in the Middle East is clearly “the story” of the first quarter, but it only became obvious in March. That final month practically felt like a full quarter unto itself. January and February, however, entertained plenty of
