Technology provides a lifeline in an extraordinary year 2020 was an extraordinary year. The coronavirus pandemic defined the year and its global spread challenged us all. Covid-19-related disruption severely impacted people's health and welfare wherever in the world they resided. From an economic perspective, the impact was devastating industrial activity and global trade were abruptly curtailed, corporate profitability fell under severe pressure, and consumer demand plummeted as a result of 'stay at home' measures.
With the global economy shuddering to a halt and remaining under pressure throughout 2020 (notwithstanding the extensive stimulus packages put in place around the world) this was a year of unprecedented challenges for investment markets (and investment managers), with particularly extreme market falls occurring in March when it became clear that the world was facing a global pandemic rather than a disease that could be contained within Asia. Markets subsequently bounced back strongly from their March lows but remained volatile. This turbulent year's challenges have, however, spurred the use of technology, with technology stocks bucking the general trend and significantly outperforming broader markets.