Investor sentiment was generally stable in February – despite a plethora of headlines that plagued the marketplace last month. Trade policy uncertainty resurfaced after the Supreme Court struck down much of President Trump’s sweeping global tariff scheme. However, the US administration responded immediately with a new 10% global tariff and is working on an order to raise it to 15%. Meanwhile, extreme optimism over artificial intelligence (AI) morphed into worries about its disruptive potential and stoked a pullback in sectors thought to be most vulnerable. Finally, geopolitical angst took hold as a dramatic escalation in the Middle East conflict unsettled financial markets at month-end.