For a third consecutive week, equity markets rallied in the face of a conflict that, on the ground, has barely improved. The S&P 500 rose 4.5% to a fresh all-time high, recouping the entirety of its post-war losses, while the Nasdaq surged on the back of strong early earnings and renewed AI enthusiasm. European bourses gained but have yet to reclaim their pre-war peaks — the Euro Stoxx 50 added 2.2% and the DAX 3.8%, though both remain more exposed to the energy shock than their US counterpart. The ASX 300, by contrast, finished the week roughly flat, held back by a sell-off in the major banks after Westpac and NAB both flagged increased provisioning for bad debts in anticipation of a war-driven economic slowdown.

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