The economic and geopolitical backdrop is creating significant uncertainty for policymakers and investors. The Fed’s plans to raise short-term interest rates meaningfully this year and the ongoing crisis in Ukraine are contributing to elevated risk aversion and dampening expectations for global growth, with a recession in Europe now considered a real possibility. Meanwhile, the Omicron variant of COVID-19 is forcing another round of lockdowns across China, with no clear path to near-term containment.
