As 2025 began, the S&P 500 was on the heels of its strongest back-to-back yearly performance since the 1990s. Wall Street was cautiously optimistic about the prospect of further gains. However, in late January, stocks tumbled after a Chinese tech startup (DeepSeek) unveiled an AI chatbot with stunning capabilities but at a much lower cost. This led to concerns that Silicon Valley was pouring unnecessary amounts of money into AI companies. Markets quickly looked past the news

After the government shutdown in Q4 2025 delayed the release of several economic data points, we now know real Q3 2025 GDP growth was stronger than anticipated at +4.3% (as of the initial estimate). This robust growth follows a resurgent +3.8% in Q2 2025. Upside surprises to growth have been a hallmark of the economy following the tariff uncertainty-driven slump in Q1, and could continue as the Atlanta Fed GDPNow is projecting Q4 GDP growth of +2.7%. This number is in line wi

Globally, it was a risk-on  rally throughout the year, with foreign equity leading the way due to cheaper valuations and a weakening dollar. Bonds also rallied due to lower interest rate expectations and three 0.25% interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve. Domestic large-cap equity markets continued to set all-time highs, illustrating the importance of staying the course after a volatile start to the year. As a reminder, the index returns above should only be used as a very