Market Perspectives

2020 Year in Review

Philip Hergel
Senior Quantitative Analyst

2020 Can't End Fast Enough

Imagine if the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic, the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s, the 1930s Great Depression, the nightmarishly messy U.S. presidential election of 2000, as well as unprecedented devastation from global natural disasters all occurred in the same calendar year — well, they just did.

2020 will be remembered as the year to forget. It will be remembered for the 1.4 million people (and still counting) who died globally due to COVID-19. It will be remembered as the year of brutal economic turmoil for millions of people who lost their jobs during the pandemic. It will be remembered for the immeasurable anguish of Black people being killed by police officers and the increasing awareness of the Black Lives Matter movement across America. It will be remembered for the uncontrollable raging wildfires around the world and the most active hurricane year on record. It will be remembered for the attack on American democracy as the presidential election results were disputed, litigated, and doubted by millions of Americans. There is no negative adjective strong enough to describe how bad 2020 was. If 2020 were a drink, it would be a colonoscopy prep. Good riddance 2020…bring on 2021! 

To read more download a PDF of our Year in Review.

Coronavirus Market Outlook

Last month we shared our thoughts on the outlook for the global economy and financial markets as the spread of COVID-19 was exploding around the world. Events have continued to unfold at a frenzied pace.  At times like this, it’s important for investors to not overreact, but remain objective and thoughtful, while also being nimble enough to act if conditions warrant action. Zevin Asset Management’s guiding principle has always been to invest in high quality securities that can endure during times like these, in an attempt to minimize major losses in our clients’ portfolios. To that end, we are closely monitoring this global health crisis, the numerous policy responses and financial market reaction, all within our longstanding investment process of assessing the macroeconomic, company and ESG risks.