Volatility and Fed rate cuts

Gateway Market Perspective highlights:

• The VIX^®, which closed July at 16.36, jumped to close August 5 at 38.57 – a level not witnessed since October 2020.
  
  
• What’s next?: the remainder of 2024 is stacked with known potential volatility events, including elections in November, global conflicts, and expectations surrounding US Fed Policy could be a larger force.
  
  
• Many view a reduction in the Fed funds rate as a positive sign for the equity market, but the full story is often more volatile than most would hope. Since 1990, data shows that the equity market has experienced an average drawdown of -19.49% following a reduction in interest rates.