News at the beginning of the week was dominated by more US economic data, while the latter half delivered interest rate decisions from three of the world’s largest economies.

AI jitters persisted last week with Broadcom and Oracle leading the sell-off. Both companies released quarterly earnings which disappointed under the market’s microscope.

Stocks moved higher last week as the market priced in an interest rate cut from the Federal Reserve with increasing certainty.

In May, markets continued their recovery from April’s lows as consumer sentiment improved and trade tensions eased.

In April, markets were highly volatile, largely due to US President Trump’s Liberation Day announcement regarding global trade tariffs, which caused steep declines worldwide early in the month.

Last month, concerns over economic growth and the introduction of new tariffs had a significant impact on global financial markets. In this investment review, we look at how markets performed.

In our annual Investment Outlook, we review 2025, and as we enter 2026, look at opportunities across the global markets for investors. 

The Zurich Investment Outlook is produced twice yearly by the team at Zurich Investments, based in Dublin, Ireland. This publication provides an in-depth insight into our current thinking and positioning, and expands on the reasons behind our economic views to our clients and customers.

As we enter 2025, we look to maintain perspective and to balance the risks across respective asset classes.