Day 3 - My Investment Diary

Higher oil costs mean increased input prices for everything from transportation to manufacturing, squeezing corporate margins and stoking worries that the Fed might delay rate cuts or even hike if inflation reaccelerates.

We saw this play out in real time: energy stocks were one of the few bright spots, up modestly, while tech and consumer discretionary sectors got hammered, with the $NASDAQ Composite Index(.IXIC.US) leading the downside as investors rotated out of high-valuation growth names.

Adding to the pressure are broader market dynamics. Valuations remain stretched, the S&P's forward P/E is hovering around 22, well above the 10-year average, and we're in the midterm year of the presidential cycle, historically a weaker period for equities with peaks often forming around mid-March.

Weak jobs data from earlier in the week didn't help, signaling potential softening in consumer spending. And let's not ignore the whispers of trade tensions resurfacing, though that's more of a lingering undercurrent.

Overall, this selloff feels like a classic risk-off move: VIX spiked back above 27, gold rallied as a safe haven, and Treasury yields dipped as bonds caught a bid.

@Bridge Buzz SG