UBS On-Air: Market Moves

We get the delayed January US employment report and benchmark revisions for the past two years. For markets what is important is that economies respond to reality, not reported data. Whatever the employment reality was in 2025, it was consistent with a low fear of unemployment and US consumers willing to cut savings to pay for tariffs. Revising reported data to bring it closer to reality does not change that story.

Gold prices have swung with rare intensity in recent days, surging to a record all-time high only to drop as much as 12% in a single session. Is the gold trade at a crossroads, or can the underlying bull market narrative resume? For insights on flows, drivers and how investors can position, join this special CIO Live with Michael Bolliger, CIO Switzerland, Wayne Gordon, CIO APAC Head of Investment Research and Content, and host Kiran Ganesh, Global Head of Investment Communications.

Join Jeremy Zirin, Senior Portfolio Manager of the House View Equity Portfolios and Head of the Private Client US Equity Team with UBS Asset Management, as he shares a performance update for US equities. Host: Dominic Schagar, Senior Equity Investment Specialist. Recorded on 21.01.26

US President Trump’s social media accounts published an attack on Canada, threatening to block the opening of a US-Canada bridge (named after a Canadian hockey player), and suggesting a Canada-China trade deal would end the playing of ice hockey in Canada. This seems an unlikely outcome in the post-“Heated Rivalry” environment. Despite the tone of the statements, markets are likely to discount this rhetoric (tariffs on US importers of goods from Iranian trading partners, 100% tariffs on US importers of Canadian goods, and 50% tariffs on US importers of Canadian aircraft have yet to materialize).

Tune in at the start of the trading week ahead of the New York opening bell as Ulrike Hoffmann-Burchardi, CIO Americas and Head of Global Equities for UBS Wealth Management, briefs you on what’s the signal, and what’s just noise in the markets. Recorded on 8 February 2026.

Japan's governing LDP looks to have won a two-thirds majority in the lower house, which means the upper house cannot stop legislation. The next focus is the budget and how a proposed consumption tax cut on food will be financed. Equities have reacted positively, bonds are likely to be somewhat cautious.

The volatility of some financial markets produces stirring financial media headlines. However, most major equity markets (other than the US) are up on the year. Precious metal volatility (up and down) has been too abrupt to generate major wealth effects. Crypto is not an asset, and is held by a tiny portion of society. It is unlikely that consumer behavior will change because of recent market moves.

The technology sector of the equity market might be experiencing a dilemma. If artificial intelligence is disruptive, will it disrupt technology companies? If it is not disruptive, are technology companies overvalued? The drop in technology share prices suggests that there has not been a bubble—the adjustment is relatively focused, and there has been little borrowing behind this. This mutes the economic consequences of recent moves.

US President Trump signed a bill ending the government shutdown. The failure of the US government to function properly is so commonplace that markets barely registered it. Democrats have signaled a united opposition to confirming former Federal Reserve Governor Warsh as the next Fed chair, until the administration’s legal pursuit of the Fed is ended. This was expected, but raises the prospect of Chair Powell staying on as FOMC chair (not Board of Governors chair) beyond May.

Sustainable investing is entering a new era, one where outcomes, resilience, and real-world impact sit at the center of portfolio construction. From equities to fixed income to alternatives, 2026 brings both structural challenges and compelling opportunities. Tiffany Agard and Andrew Lee, from the CIO Sustainable & Impact Investing team, share how investors can navigate these themes, where fundamentals are strengthening, and what it means to build portfolios equipped for the world we’re heading into.