Smart Investor: Best Growth Stocks, the HALO Boost for Dividend Stocks and What’s Next for the Market.

This week’s highlights:

• Weekly Market Update: Stocks Slide as Financials, Consumer Cyclicals Fall
• Why the Stock Market Remained Resilient Amid the War in Iran
• Dividend Stocks Are Getting a Boost From the HALO Trade. Can It Last?
• Inflation Holds Steady as Economists Warn of Rising Energy Costs Amid Iran War
• 2 Cautionary Tales From Private Equity and Private Credit Markets
• Asian Equities: Risks Are Rising as Iran War Disruptions Widen
• 10 Best Growth Stocks to Buy for the Long Term

Stocks had a soggy end to the week, losing just shy of 2% since last Friday. But considering the crosswinds buffeting global markets, US equities have held up well. In fact, since the war with Iran began, the Morningstar US Market Index is down less than 4%. What’s behind that resilience? Sarah Hansen looks at the factors supporting the US stock market and what analysts think the near-term outlook may hold.

In the background, some parts of the US stock market have been struggling more than others, most notably software stocks, which have sunk amid concerns about the impact of artificial intelligence on their business models. But as Morningstar Indexes’ Dan Lefkovitz writes, there’s a new acronym making the rounds on Wall Street for the kinds of stocks that have been doing well. They’re called HALO stocks, and Lefkovitz dives into what they are and why their strong performance has been good for dividend strategies.

It’s been a different story for stock markets in Europe and Asia, where economies are more exposed to the disruption in energy supplies. The Morningstar Developed Markets Europe Index has dropped 5.4%, and the Morningstar Emerging Markets Europe Index, which has a heavy weighting in Korean stocks, has lost 8.5%. Lorraine Tan, who follows Asian stock markets for Morningstar, takes a look at the factors behind the steep declines in those markets, the countries that should be more resilient to an oil shock, and the outlook beyond the war.

The oil and gas price spikes threaten to revive inflation concerns. Even before the jump in oil prices, inflation remained well above the Federal Reserve’s 2.0% target. Case in point, the January Personal Consumption Expenditures Price Index came in softer than expected at a 2.8% annual increase, but that’s a far cry from 2.0%. Meanwhile, this past week, the Consumer Price Index also showed inflation stuck around a 2.4% rate. But, as we report, analysts are worried about what the inflation data will look like starting in March.

Meanwhile, the private credit markets continue to draw attention, and not the kind that their boosters want to see. Over the past week, more private credit funds reported heavy redemptions. PitchBook’s Alexander Davis explains the differing approaches that firms such as Blackstone, BlackRock, and Blue Owl have taken to deal with the waves of redemptions and what it could mean for the private credit industry. Davis also joined Ivanna Hampton to discuss the big trends in public/private convergence, and Morningstar Managing Director of Manager Research Jeff Ptak tackles the issue from the side of fund investors, with a pair of cautionary tales. (For more on the big news in the public market/private convergence story, sign up for Davis’ newsletter here.)

Lastly, we’ve updated the screen for the 10 best growth stocks to buy for the long term. These names, which are pulled from Morningstar’s Best Companies to Own list, include one of the most famous sports car companies on earth, and also the largest maker of semiconductor chips.

As always, be sure to visit our Markets page for our latest coverage and live stock market updates, along with our full weekly calendar of key upcoming data and events.