March 30, 2026By Julie Biel, CFA

Markets in Transition: War, AI, and Shifting Leadership

Market Review 1Q 2026 | KayneCast 308

“I think if we think about the big themes that were at play during the first quarter, obviously, the largest of them is going to be the war in Iran.”

Join Julie Biel, CFA, Chief Market Strategist at Kayne Anderson Rudnick, as she delves into the key factors driving the economy and equity markets in 1Q 2026. In this episode, Julie discusses the war in Iran, the evolving role of artificial intelligence, differences between large‑cap and small‑cap market dynamics, developments in private credit, and a framework for evaluating how businesses may withstand the threat of generative AI.

Key Insights and Trends

The war in Iran was a dominant macro driver in the first quarter, contributing to strong performance in energy and related industries while influencing broader market leadership. Artificial intelligence participation continued to expand beyond software into data‑center‑related infrastructure and memory, while concerns around generative AI pressured software‑heavy areas of the market. At the same time, heightened scrutiny of leverage and underwriting quality weighed on publicly traded private credit platforms, alongside shifting performance dynamics between large‑cap and small‑cap equities.

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