Mixed development on stock markets; some leading indexes reaching new highs

Global stock markets turned in mixed performance in 2024. Economic data in the USA was generally positive. It was primarily driven by private consumption and boosted at the end of the year by Donald Trump’s announced measures to protect the US economy. In the eurozone and in Germany in particular, the economy deteriorated over the course of the reporting year. Declining industrial production and poor sentiment in the services and construction sectors weighed on the eurozone’s competitiveness. The challenging situation in the automotive industry came as a particularly negative factor. Ongoing armed conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, as well as political uncertainty in several European countries also had an adverse impact. A decline in energy prices year-over-year and the ECB’s interest rate pivot in June – three months before the Federal Reserve – provided support. Further interest rate cuts by the ECB followed in quick succession in September, October and December 2024.

The international stock markets reflected the mixed economic situation in the USA and Europe. The US stock indexes reached new highs in some cases over the course of the year following Donald Trump’s re-election as President of the United States and interest rate cuts. The Dow Jones Index, which tracks the performance of the 30 largest US companies, ended 2024 at 42,544 points. This corresponds to an increase of 12.9%. The much broader S&P 500 Index rose - as in 2023 - even more dynamically by 23.3%, ending 2024 at 5,882 points. On December 6, 2024, the S&P 500 remained just below the 6,100 point mark with a new all-time high.

The German stock market showed a mixed picture in 2024. While the DAX benchmark index rose sharply again in the trading year 2024, the performance of the indexes for medium-sized and smaller companies in Germany was negative. The DAX rose by 18.8% over the year and exceeded the previous high of 20,000 points several times in December 2024. At the close of trading on December 31, 2024, the leading index stood at 19,909 points. The SDAX, where NORMA Group is also listed, lost value slightly during the trading year. The index ended the 2024 trading year at 13,711 points, 1.8% below the 2023 year-end level. The MDAX was even weaker with a drop of 5.7%. The index ended the last trading day of 2024 at 25,589 points.