The stock market rally rolled on last week as investors welcomed the plans for some states to begin the process of reopening their economies in addition to some promising Covid-19 treatment data and the continued boost from Federal Reserve stimulus.

U.S. equities broadly posted their best weekly gains since 1974 driven by initial signs of a plateau in new confirmed Covid-19 cases in hot spots in the U.S. and internationally and by the announcement of additional stimulus from the Federal Reserve.

U.S. stocks struggled for direction last week but closed lower as the fallout from the coronavirus pandemic has become increasingly present in economic data, including another record increase in unemployment claims.

Last week U.S. equities staged a significant relief rally with double digit percentage gains driven in part by oversold conditions and by announcement of record amounts of fiscal and monetary policy stimulus. For the week, the Dow Jones climbed 12.8% while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite gained 10.3% and 9.1%, respectively.

We wanted to stay in touch and let you know about some defensive changes we are making in your portfolio. Unprecedented measures being taken globally to combat the COVID-19 virus will most certainly have negative economic repercussions, which we believe will be both deeper and longer-lasting than investment markets are currently recognizing.