The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite index is poised for a 21% gain this year, while the Russell 2000 index of smaller companies is roughly 12% higher year-to-date.
In early April, when Trump announced sweeping tariffs on US trading partners, the S&P 500 fell to the brink of bear market territory – Wall Street’s term for a drop of 20% from the latest high. Both the Nasdaq Composite and Russell 2000 indexes did briefly tumble into bear markets.
But major indexes quickly bounced back after Trump walked back his steepest tariffs, easing Wall Street’s fears about a tariff-driven economic slowdown.
Stocks have since surged to new highs.
That’s been in spite of persistent jitters about the economy, Robert Edwards, chief investment officer at Edwards Asset Management, said in a note.
“The market continues to climb the wall of worry into next year,” he said.
He added that 2026 “should be another year of record setting for stocks”, pointing in part to expectations for lower borrowing costs, which could boost corporate earnings and drive stock prices higher.
Strong earnings growth in corporate America has been a key driver of the stock market rally since the tariff-driven whiplash in the spring, said Parag Thatte, an equity strategist at Deutsche Bank.
At the same time, geopolitical tensions, Trump’s tariffs and expectations of interest rate cuts added to investor demand this year for safe haven assets, such as gold and other commodities. The price of gold is on track for a nearly 70% yearly increase.
Bitcoin, on the other hand, has struggled to keep up with strong returns across stocks and gold.
Despite getting a boost earlier in the year from the Trump administration’s support for digital assets, the world’s largest cryptocurrency is poised to end 2025 slightly lower, after a sharp decline from its record highs in October.
