New Year in the Stock Market Even as December limped to a close - no Santa Claus rally in sight - the fervor surrounding artificial intelligence (AI) left its mark in 2024, powering significant gains in the S&P 500 and Nasdaq.
Further stoking the fire: the Federal Reserve cutting interest rates on three separate occasions in the latter half of the year. Stocks also rallied sharply following Trump's win in November, as traders factored in the expectation for lower taxes and a looser regulatory approach under a Republican administration.
The S&P 500 ended 2024 with an annual gain of about 23% after rising by 24% in 2023, marking the first time since 1997 and 1998 that the index has closed with back-to-back gains of above 20%.
Those are the headlines for the year. But there’s more to a market than headlines. Let’s get some perspective.
Further stoking the fire: the Federal Reserve cutting interest rates on three separate occasions in the latter half of the year. Stocks also rallied sharply following Trump's win in November, as traders factored in the expectation for lower taxes and a looser regulatory approach under a Republican administration.
The S&P 500 ended 2024 with an annual gain of about 23% after rising by 24% in 2023, marking the first time since 1997 and 1998 that the index has closed with back-to-back gains of above 20%.
Those are the headlines for the year. But there’s more to a market than headlines. Let’s get some perspective.
RSS Feed