Weekly Market Bullets

for the week ending 2/20/2026

• US Equity Markets rose last week despite the rising probability of an attack in Iran and uncertainty tied to the Supreme Court's overturning some of President Trump's tariff orders. The S&P 500 was up 1.1% for the week and is now up 0.9% for the year. The Nasdaq increased 1.5% for the week but remains down 1.5% for the year, while the Russell 2000 (small cap stocks) rose 0.7% for the week and now up 7.3% for the year.

• Global Equity Markets increased last week, buoyed by positive economic data out of Asia and the Supreme Court's ruling on the tariffs. Developed Markets rose 0.9% for the week and are now up 8.3% for the year. Emerging Markets were up 0.8% for the week to bring their gains for the year to 11.6%.

• US Economic Growth for Q4 came in well below expectations. While still subject to revision, the initial estimate for US economic growth in Q4 came in at 1.4%, well below expectations of 2.8% and even higher forecasts above 4% just a few weeks ago. The government shutdown is estimated to have hurt growth in the quarter by roughly 1%.

• Trump moves quickly to impose replacement tariffs following the Supreme Court Decision. The Supreme Court decision to overturn a portion of the tariffs was not unexpected by Wall Street. President Trump immediately imposed 10% tariffs, then raised them to 15% tariffs, using different authority from the one overturned by the Court. While the next few months could be messy, it is widely expected that President Trump will be able to re-establish tariffs rates under different authority that would not be overturned. Investors now face the uncertainty of whether firms will get refunded prior tariff payments and what tariffs will ultimately look like.

Market Data

for the week ending 2/20/2026