During the first quarter, U.S. stocks, driven primarily by seven companies, led equity markets higher while most bond indices were down. Seven stocks were responsible for over 62% of the S&P 500’s total gain in 2023 and in 1Q24. Meanwhile, bonds (as measured by the Bloomberg Aggregate Bond Index) were down for the 7^th time out of the last 10 quarters. 

Predicting interest rates continues to be a challenge for investors as expectations of Fed action changed materially over the course of the quarter. 

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