• 2024 was a blockbuster year but ended on a quiet note with stocks sliding. In another shortened trading week, stocks in the U.S. slipped ahead of New Year's Day. The S&P 500 fell about 0.4%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped just below the flatline, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite led the losses at 0.9%. 2024 still marked two consecutive years of more than 20% gains for the S&P 500. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite gained almost 30%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average posted a more modest 13% win.
• Themes that helped make 2024 a winner. The Federal Reserve made its first interest rate cut in four years and President-elect Donald Trump's is soon returning to the White House. These events helped stocks head higher in the last two months. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 1,508 points the day after Election Day, as investors made bets on what Donald Trump's return to the White House will mean. The year featured many familiar winners, such as Big Tech.
• Tech companies flourished. Through three-quarters of reports, the combination of Apple, Alphabet, Microsoft, Amazon, Meta, Tesla, and Nvidia grew earnings year over year by 33% in 2024 compared to just 4.2% growth for the other 493 S&P 500 companies, per FactSet data.
• A strong market is expected next year. With strong earnings expected from many companies in 2025 and US economic growth anticipated to remain resilient, additional market increases may be on the horizon for 2025.
• Inflation to continue. The Feds have pushed back their timeline for price stability to 2027. Interest rates will remain "higher for longer" and will extend into 2025, even as the central bank has cut rates three times this year, amounting to a reduction of 100 basis points.
• Gold skyrocketed for another year. The precious metal increased 28% this year, logging its biggest yearly gain since 2010. 
• Bitcoin exploded. The #1 digital currency rallied over 100% this year, though it has pulled back from the $100,000 level it breached earlier this month.
• Retailer investors jumped on these stocks. Six corporate tickers with the most retail investor inflows this year included AMD, Nvidia, Palantir, Apple, Tesla, and Amazon. These names pulled in $67.7 billion in total retail inflows this year and Nvidia overtook Tesla as the most popular stock among retail investors.
• Super Micro failed to shine next to other AI companies. After a wild ride Super Micro stock is ending 2024 up just 6%.
• Nvidia was a huge winner. $91.2 billion is how much revenue Nvidia made in the nine months through Oct. 27. Nvidia's chips are driving much of the move into AI, and its revenue through the last nine months catapulted from less than $39 billion the year before.

_______________________________________________________

Goldman Sachs chief US equity strategist David Kostin and others say the market could surge higher even without the "Magnificent Seven" tech stocks' massive outperformance continuing in 2025.

Most Active Stocks

• Nvidia (NVDA)
• Apple (AAPL)
• Tesla (TSLA)
• Google (GOOGL)
• Meta (META)
• SiriusPoint Ltd. (SPNT)
• Acadia Pharmaceuticals (ACAD)
• United States Steel Corp. (X)
• NextDecade Corporation (NEXT)
• FTAI Aviation Limited (FTAI)

In the Spotlight

Bill Ackman Thinks Trump will Privatize Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac

According to billionaire investor Bill Ackman and reported by Yahoo Finance's David Hollerith,, the Trump administration could end one of the oldest fights on Wall Street by loosening the federal government’s grip over Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae. Ackman said Monday on X that "there is a credible path" for the mortgage giants to be removed from government conservatorship and made into private companies within the next two years. That could result in an initial public offering in 2026. "Trump likes big deals and this would be the biggest deal in history," added Ackman. "I am confident he will get it done."