While corporate earnings and economic data remained strong throughout the fourth quarter, the prospect of higher interest rates and the emergence of a new COVID variant continued to weigh on global equity markets.
It is now up to most advanced countries to help ease the transition to a new normal, including reducing inflation and unemployment. Mistakes are costly here, and markets will feel the consequences of policy normalization and slower growth on return expectations. Now, the Omicron variant has arisen, offering significant market hazards.
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