S&P 500 — US Large Cap Index
FTSE 100 — UK Blue Chips
Euro Stoxx 50 — Eurozone Leaders
DAX 40 — German Equities
CAC 40 — French Market Index
Nikkei 225 — Japan Benchmark
Hang Seng — Hong Kong Index
Shanghai Composite — China Mainland
ASX 200 — Australian Market
TSX Composite — Canada Index
Nifty 50 — India Large Cap
STI Index — Singapore Market
KOSPI — South Korea Index
Bovespa — Brazil Equities
JSE Top 40 — South Africa Index
IPC Index — Mexico Market
BNY’s Bob Savage notes that equities show the clearest recovery in risk appetite, though holdings remain below mean reversion, especially in South Korea and Taiwan. Developed markets are rebounding faster than emerging markets. The report highlights that a sustained recovery in South Korean and Taiwanese equity holdings would signal a broader normalization in global risk sentiment.
Risk-on flows and Asian tech lag
“As risk-driven flows continue, equity markets remain the asset class where a risk recovery is the most apparent on a level basis. However, our holdings data indicate that there is still quite some distance to go before full mean reversion. This is the case for both emerging and developed market equities, but on a relative basis developed markets are recovering more strongly.”
“Taiwan and South Korea were among the most-affected equity markets globally: they were faced with a difficult combination of a high beta to the global AI theme and severe adverse exposure to energy supply difficulties. Both were extremely overheld heading into the conflict, and the impact was clear: South Korean equities dropped almost 40 percentage points (of the rolling 12-month average) from peak to trough and have only recovered a small fraction of the losses. This represents a key source of financial conditions tightening as new BoK Governor Shi Shin Hyun-song takes the reins.”
“Taiwan’s drop was smaller, but the recovery is similarly negligible. Out of all the risk barometers, we believe a holdings recovery in these two markets would be the clearest sign of a global return to normality in risk sentiment.”
“Robust global demand, with only light outflows in Canada, Czechia, South Korea and the Philippines. Significant inflows were seen in Australia, Norway, Sweden, Brazil, Mexico, Chile, Hungary, Türkiye, China and Taiwan. In EM, industrials, consumer staples, financials, IT and utilities all recorded strong inflows.”
“iFlow Mood advanced further into risk-on territory at 0.258, driven by accelerated equity demand, nearing its mid-February 2026 highs.”
