Busting the Myth of Treasuries as a Haven

When stocks go down, bonds go up, right? That’s the received wisdom, at least. Well, it’s not what happened when war broke out between the US and Iran last month and both stocks and Treasuries slumped. It wasn’t true last year when both stocks and Treasuries surged. And it wasn’t true when they simultaneously plunged in 2022, with Treasuries actually taking heavier losses.

Those are a lot of disappointments in a relatively short time. That also left some investors wondering if Treasuries are still the bear-market hedge they are touted to be — which prompted me to ask if they ever were. After digging into the data, I discovered a surprising answer: no.