The Dow Jones index staged a strong recovery after crashing to a multi-month low in the first quarter. It is trading at $34,920, about 8.37% above its lowest level in Q1. This price is about 5.44% below its all-time high. Other American indices like the Nasdaq 100, S&P 500, and Russel 2000 had a similar price action in Q1. The same is true with international indexes like the German DAX and French CAC 40.
The Dow Jones recovered in Q1 as investors focused on a number of factors. First, there were concerns about the rising cost of doing business as commodity and labour growth continued. The price of key items like steel, aluminium, oil, and natural gas went parabolic as the crisis in Ukraine escalated. Second, there were issues with the hawkish Federal Reserve after the bank started hiking interest rates.
Finally, the DJIA index recovered as investors focused on corporate earnings. Companies in the Dow published mixed quarterly results. For example, while Goldman Sachs had a good Q4, others like JP Morgan and Citigroup had a tough period. On the other hand, tech companies like Apple and Microsoft also did well during the quarter.
The best performing Dow Jones constituent was Chevron, whose stock price jumped by 40% as the price of crude oil jumped. It was followed by Travelers, America Express, Dow, Merck, Amgen, and Caterpillar.
