After months of historically low realised volatility levels, February saw a sharp rise in the volatility of equity markets. All major equity indices posted losses for the month of between 3% and 5%. The main eurozone benchmark posted one of the heaviest monthly falls, while UK equity markets lost just over 3%. Global corporate bond markets lost ground in February as spreads widened, whilst eurozone bonds changed marginally. Most eurozone government bonds made marginal gains in February. January was a mixed month for eurozone price inflation with most countries seeing a fall in inflation. There were some spikes in equity volatility risk premium at the start of February that have subsequently subsided, and in the case of the FTSE, turned negative.
