Fourth Quarter Review and Outlook 2025

What just happened? In a challenging environment – geopolitical, fiscal, and otherwise – markets showed tremendous resilience. The spring brought sweeping tariff announcements from the returning Trump administration, but these were quickly countered by resets and negotiations that only added to market uncertainty – and markets hate uncertainty. Still, equities recovered from their April dip. 2025 also now owns the distinction of featuring the longest government shutdown in U.S. history, as well as significant geopolitical events in Ukraine, the Middle East, and Venezuela—all of which only added more uncertainty to the hazy picture.