After a stormy 2022, US stocks gained during the first quarter of 2023 in a surprise show of resilience despite a banking crisis, cryptocurrency meltdowns and uncertainty about what’s ahead for the economy.
Still, nothing about the first quarter’s performance was linear. The broad-based S&P 500 seesawed throughout the quarter, ending January on a high note before tumbling in February, rising again in March and ultimately ending the quarter up about 7%.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq made a remarkable resurgence, soaring nearly 17% in its best quarterly gain since the fourth quarter of 2020. That comes after a tough 2022 for tech stocks, as investors sought out less risky avenues to ride out turbulence from the Fed’s interest rate hike campaign. The Dow Jones rose about 0.4%.