What was at the bottom in 2024 is now at the top in 2025 and what was at a high seems to have moderated. Are the world markets giving any signals as they continue to have divergent swings? One good part is that despite the geo-political crises and the Tariff war raging, all major world markets are in a positive zone.
World markets have always reacted differently even though most events are now driven by geo-political concerns. We talk of global alignment and inter-dependencies of various economies but the stock markets seem to tell a different story. Hang Seng and Kospi which have underperformed in the past 3 out of 5 calendar years, have now been emerging as the stars of 2025 so far.
Historically, indices that remain in the bottom three years tend to bounce back into the top three within five to six years — and Hang Seng seems to be on that course during 2025. Interestingly, Hang Seng was the only index to deliver a negative five-year average, but its 2025 turnaround has helped it erase much of the past underperformance.
Basis the average of last 5 years (CY2020-24), NASDAQ; Nifty50 and Taiwan have claimed their spot as the top 3. NASDAQ has had a dream run in the last 2 years; will that continue? Nifty50 has not seen a negative return in the last 5 years. Next 4 months shall reveal more.
1. NASDAQ Composite – Driven mainly by technology giants;
2. Nifty50 (India) – Strong domestic flows and resilient economic growth;
3. Taiwan Index – Benefiting predominantly from semiconductor and electronics demand.
It would be interesting to see if Hang Seng will be making a sharp recovery in the next 4 months, and will Shanghai Composite and FTSE100 catch up. Is it possible for NASDAQ to continue to give a high double-digit positive outcome?
As we approach the last 4 months of 2025, key questions remain on every investor’s mind:
1. Will Hang Seng sustain its recovery and finish the year strong?
2. Can Shanghai Composite and FTSE100 catch up with the global rally?
3. Will NASDAQ continue its streak of delivering high double-digit gains?
4. Will Nifty50 have another positive year making it 6 years in a row?
January 2026 will reveal the data and give us the real answers. Until then, we’ll be on the lookout to see if the momentum holds and if any new leaders are emerging.
Stay tuned because as markets dynamics continue to evolve, we’ll continue tracking and sharing timely insights.
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