Global markets endured a volatile run in 2025, but when the last trades closed on Dec. 31 all the major asset classes posted gains for the year, based on a set of ETFs. As a result, outperforming passive global asset allocation strategies was unusually difficult in 2025… again.
The US dollar ended the year with its worst performance since 2017 as Federal Reserve turmoil, trade shocks and economic uncertainty hammered the greenback. The dollar finished the year down about 8% compared to a basket of foreign currencies, according to the Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index.
Whether markets are bullish or bearish, calm or volatile, or return dispersion is narrow or wide, the evidence remains overwhelming: “passive” investing through low-cost index funds or systematic strategies gives investors the best chance of achieving their financial goals. The data from 2025—a year practically designed for active managers to succeed—only reinforces this truth.
Historical stock market averages can inform an educated guess at a long-term expected average for the future. Yet at the same time, we should expect to be wrong every year. In the stock market, statistical oddities cluster. Averages don't.
While investment skills matter, many times how the market does matters more.
In America the top 10% control two-thirds of all the wealth. The top 1% hold nearly one-third of all the wealth while the top 1% of the top 1% (the top 0.1%) has almost 14% of all the money. However you feel about it, this likely isn't something that goes away.
Although all the numbers for the year are not in, it is pretty safe to say that the economic damage so far in the current administration's term looks to have been smaller than had been predicted. Then, are most of the economic effects that were expected in 2025 now due to hit in 2026 instead? Or did economists have it all wrong from the start?
2025 was a difficult year for many businesses not benefiting from the AI boom, but it was especially hard on small businesses. High tariffs have been a body blow to the many small businesses that rely, one way or another, on imported goods.
The big reason to have an emergency fund—and this is where the three to six months' worth of living expenses guideline comes from—is to cover your basic costs in case of job loss. The greater your fixed expenses and the harder your job would be to replace (because it's specialized and/or higher paying), the larger your emergency fund needs to be.
Here are the key steps to take when setting up your emergency fund.
The recent inflation surge brought inflation back on people's minds. Here's a quantification of when and how much attention to inflation changes and the macroeconomic implications of these attention changes.
2025 has been a monster year for dealmaking, trailing only 2021 in terms of dollar value, according to preliminary data from LSEG. Dealmakers were appropriately optimistic entering the year, due to falling interest rates, the rise of artificial intelligence, and decreased regulatory headwinds in the U.S.
Beneath the surface fatigue, the UK's underlying system is undergoing a quiet but consequential reconfiguration, gradually realigning its long-term engines of growth.
The biggest “secret” in retirement planning is that flexibility is a superpower. If you're willing to pull even a few levers, you can take less risk than the spreadsheet assumes.
