FabrikaCr/iStock via Getty Images In the fourth quarter of 2025, the MSCI World Selection Index (Fund Index) returned 3.98%. ESG equities outperformed broad developed markets, as represented by the MSCI World Index, which returned 3.12% in the quarter. The top-performing sectors over this time period were communication services and health care, returning 17.76% and 13.79%, respectively. Consumer d...
FabrikaCr/iStock via Getty Images In the fourth quarter of 2025, the MSCI World Selection Index (Fund Index) returned 3.98%. ESG equities outperformed broad developed markets, as represented by the MSCI World Index, which returned 3.12% in the quarter. The top-performing sectors over this time period were communication services and health care, returning 17.76% and 13.79%, respectively. Consumer discretionary and real estate were the worst-performing sectors for this quarter, with returns of -2.19% and -0.93%, respectively. The top-performing countries over this time period were Finland and Italy, returning 14.44% and 8.35% respectively. Israel and Portugal were the worst-performing countries for this quarter, with returns of -24.15% and -4.48%, respectively. The fourth quarter began with a U.S. government shutdown, which lasted into mid-November. The U.S. economy avoided major broad-based disruption. However, the shutdown hampered economic data collection creating a considerable information vacuum just as markets sought clarity on growth, inflation, and policy trajectories. Following resumed economic data, the broader U.S. macroeconomic landscape held firm with ongoing resilience amid a gradually cooling labor market. The downside labor market risk kept U.S. Federal Reserve easing in play, leading to two rate cuts in the quarter even as the economy expanded. The global tariff environment proved less disruptive than earlier fears. U.S. monthly tariff collections rose but remain well below levels implied by announced policies. Financial markets capped a strong 2025 with fourth-quarter gains in both equities and fixed income. Non-U.S. equities outpaced the U.S., leaving global equities with a low-single-digit gain. For the U.S., a strong third-quarter corporate earnings season helped bolster the earnings outlook heading into 2026. Artificial intelligence (AI) remained a central market topic, with investors shifting from broad-based enthusiasm to taking a more critical...
One of the federal vaccine advisors hand-selected by anti-vaccine Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has angrily resigned from his position, complaining of "drama" amid a spat with a spokesperson. Robert Malone—a former researcher turned outspoken anti-vaccine activist and conspiracy theorist—confirmed he was stepping down Tuesday afternoon to CQ Roll Call , which first reported the news. He t...
One of the federal vaccine advisors hand-selected by anti-vaccine Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has angrily resigned from his position, complaining of "drama" amid a spat with a spokesperson. Robert Malone—a former researcher turned outspoken anti-vaccine activist and conspiracy theorist—confirmed he was stepping down Tuesday afternoon to CQ Roll Call , which first reported the news. He told the outlet that his decision to quit came after a "miscommunication" about the fate of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP). Kennedy had populated ACIP with anti-vaccine allies including Malone, who served as vice chair, after summarily firing all 17 experts on the panel last June. Last week, a federal judge temporarily blocked Kennedy's ACIP appointments , including Malone. He also stayed the changes that its members had made to federal vaccine guidance, as well as the dramatic overhaul of the childhood vaccine schedule Kennedy made without them. The judge ruled all the moves were likely illegal. On Thursday, Malone claimed on social media that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) had disbanded ACIP and planned to completely reconstitute it (again) , without appealing the judge's ruling or defending Kennedy's ACIP picks from the judge's claims that they were unqualified. But soon after, Malone retracted his claim, saying it was a miscommunication and that disbanding ACIP was merely one of the "options being considered." Read full article Comments