Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial news
Good morning, and welcome to our rolling coverage of business, the financial markets and the world economy.
It’s the last full trading day of the year, and investors around the world can look back at some strong gains over the last 12 months.
The MSCI All Country World Index, which tracks equities across developed and emerging markets, has gained over 21% during 2025, its best annual performance since 2019 and the second best since 2009.
It was a choppy year, though; nine months ago, we were bracing for Donald Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ tariffs, which triggered a market slump in early April, followed by a rebound as the US president blinked.
