Volatility reduced by end of Iraq war

With the successful resolution of the conflict in Iraq, a major uncertainty has been removed and volatility has reduced dramatically. Western equity markets have subsequently rallied more than 20% from their March lows but the outbreak of Sars has undermined the potential for a concomitant rally in Asian markets. The Dow Jones Eurostoxx 50 hit a six-year low on 12 March at 1909. It had had risen 20.2% to 2294 by 12 May. The Hang Sen index, which has been among those hardest hit by the Sars epidemic, reached a five-year low on 25 April, falling to 8409, and had only recovered by a modes...