Three months into 2026, the scorecard looks almost nothing like it did at the end of last year. Last year’s biggest winners have stumbled. Two major forces — a U.S.-Iran war that sent oil prices sharply higher, and a reversal of the AI trade that punished tech-heavy portfolios — have played a pivotal role in reshuffling nearly every asset class.
Here’s how the major asset classes have performed so far in 2026.
U.S. Stock Market
The S&P 500 is down about 5% through the end of March — a rough start after three consecutive years of double-digit gains, including +17.9% in 2025.
One way to understand what’s happening beneath the surface: In 2025, every single S&P 500 sector finished the year positive. The worst performer was Consumer Discretionary at +6%. Even Energy, which had a difficult year across the broader asset class, gained 8.7%. It was about as broad-based a rally as you’ll see.
2026 is the mirror image so far. Five of eleven sectors are in the red, and the ones that are working are almost entirely driven by either the war in the Middle East or a flight to defensive, yield-oriented names:
Energy’s +35.7% gain stands out from the rest, driven by the Iran conflict disrupting oil supply through the Strait of Hormuz. Strip that out, and the market picture is uniformly cautious — investors rotating into utilities, staples, and materials while selling the growth-heavy sectors that led in 2024 and 2025.
The Magnificent Seven (Apple, Microsoft, Nvidia, Amazon, Alphabet, Meta, and Tesla) span Information Technology, Communication Services, and Consumer Discretionary, which are three of the four worst-performing sectors this quarter. That explains why the MAGS ETF is down 16% while the Information Technology sector as a whole is down “only” 8.6%. The biggest names inside those sectors are getting hit harder than the sectors themselves.
The value vs. growth split tells the same story. Large-cap value is up about 3% while large-cap growth is down 10% — a 13-percentage-point gap in a single quarter.
If you want to put this quarter’s numbers in a longer context, the S&P 500 return calculator shows what the market has historically returned over multi-year periods. Short-term drawdowns like this are a normal part of investing.
International Stocks
International stocks are roughly flat on the year after a standout 2025, when developed markets gained 31.9% and emerging markets gained 33.6%. Emerging markets have a slight edge in 2026 at +1.3%, while developed international is essentially flat at -0.3%.
Both are outperforming the S&P 500 for the second consecutive year — though at much tighter margins than last year.
Bonds and Cash
Bonds have given back a small amount this year after delivering +7.3% in 2025. The Fed held rates steady in March, signaling only one cut in 2026, which has kept upward pressure on yields and modest downward pressure on bond prices. Cash is earning about 0.3% for the quarter in T-bills — modest, but the rate environment still favors high-yield savings accounts and money market funds.
REITs
Real estate investment trusts are essentially flat on the year. REITs gained just 2.3% in all of 2025, and the “higher for longer” rate environment continues to weigh on the asset class.
Precious Metals
Gold is the strongest performer among the core asset classes tracked here, up about 6.8% year-to-date after its historic 66% gain in 2025. The story in 2026 has been volatile: gold surged above $5,600 per ounce in late January before pulling back sharply in March, returning to the low $4,400s. Investors who held since January 1 are up nearly 7%.
Silver had an even wilder ride. It hit a nominal all-time high of $121.67 per ounce on January 29 — nearly double where it started the year — before crashing more than 40% in a matter of days as exchanges raised margin requirements and speculative positions unwound. It has since stabilized around $71-73 per ounce, leaving it up roughly 4-5% for the year.
For context on gold’s longer-term track record, the gold investment returns calculator shows historical performance going back decades.
Cryptocurrency
After finishing 2025 in the red, crypto has continued to struggle. Bitcoin entered 2026 around $87,000-$89,000 and is trading near $67,000-$68,000 — down roughly 25%. Ethereum has fallen back below $2,000 after starting the year at ~$3,200. Solana is down approximately 50%.
The “Bitcoin as digital gold” comparison took a beating in 2025, when gold surged 66% while Bitcoin fell 6%. In 2026, gold is up 7% while the major cryptocurrencies are deep in the red.
Commodities
Oil is the year’s biggest numerical gainer. WTI crude started the year at around $57 per barrel and is now trading above $100, driven almost entirely by the U.S.-Iran conflict, which has restricted flow through the Strait of Hormuz.
Oil was 2025’s biggest loser at -20%, and it’s 2026’s biggest gainer so far — not because of anything an investor could have anticipated, but because of an unpredictable geopolitical event. The asset class quilt illustrates this pattern going back decades. Last year’s worst performers frequently become next year’s leaders, for reasons that have nothing to do with picking the right asset class at the right time.
The Full Picture
Key Takeaways
Every sector was up in 2025. Most are down in 2026. Last year was one of the broadest rallies in recent memory — not a single S&P 500 sector finished negative. This year, five of eleven are in the red, with gains concentrated almost entirely in energy and defensive sectors.
The AI trade has reversed, at least for now. After driving enormous returns in 2024 and 2025, the Magnificent Seven are this year’s worst-performing major U.S. equity group. The sectors where they live — IT, Communication Services, Consumer Discretionary — are all down 6-10%.
Gold is the strongest core asset class this quarter. After a 66% gain in 2025, it’s up another 6.8% in the first three months of 2026 — though that headline number hides a wild January spike and a painful March correction.
Diversification worked this quarter. A broadly diversified investor was largely insulated from both the tech selloff and crypto losses, while capturing some gains in gold and defensive sectors. The range from +44% oil to -50% Solana shows just how much it matters not to concentrate in any single asset class.
Last year’s winners are rarely this year’s winners. The asset class quilt makes this point visually across more than two decades of data. Predicting which asset class will lead in any given year is extraordinarily difficult.
Final Thoughts
The start of 2026 is a good reminder of how quickly the script can flip. Last year’s winners are lagging, and the biggest gains are coming from places few people were betting on.
That’s exactly why trying to time markets rarely works. A diversified portfolio didn’t avoid volatility this quarter, but it helped soften the extremes.
The main takeaway: Stay diversified, keep costs low and focus on the long term. Short-term surprises are inevitable, but a disciplined approach is what carries you through them.
Note: All returns are approximate and based on data available as of March 31, 2026. S&P 500, sector, Small Cap, International, Emerging Markets, REITs, Bonds, Cash, and Gold figures are based on index data. Value/growth, Nasdaq-100, MAGS, and cryptocurrency figures reflect ETF and spot price returns. Oil reflects WTI spot price. Returns include dividends where applicable.
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