Major Asset Classes | March 2026 | Performance Review

Markets took a beating in March, thanks to the war with Iran. Commodities surged and cash edged higher, but the rest of the major asset classes fell, in some cases sharply, based on a set of proxy ETFs.

The only place to hide was in raw materials. The iShares S&P GSCI Commodity-Indexed Trust (GSG) soared more than 24% last month, and is now the top-performer over several trailing windows. To the extent that a given portfolio strategy is ahead of its rivals, there’s a decent chance that a relatively high weight in commodities and/or cash explain the alpha.

Red ink dominated the performance ledger otherwise in March. Global property shares ex-US (VNQI) were hit especially hard, tumbling more than 12% last month.

Despite the widespread selling, all the major asset classes are posting gains in year-over-year terms and for the trailing 3-year window. With reports emerging that the war could soon end, the optimists are arguing anew that March could soon be viewed as another painful but temporary diversion in an ongoing bull trend.

Repair and recovery, when it does begin, will certainly be welcome after last month’s carnage. The Global Market Index (GMI) in March posted its biggest monthly decline in 3-1/2 years. For perspective, keep in mind that the benchmark had been running hot for an extended period before the war, posting 11 straight months of gain, the longest stretch of wins in nine years. Something had to give, and in this case the war was the catalyst.

GMI is an unmanaged benchmark (maintained by CapitalSpectator.com) that holds all the major asset classes (except cash) in market-value weights via ETFs and represents a competitive benchmark for globally diversified, multi-asset-class portfolio strategies.