Gold and silver outshone bitcoin in 2025 as international stocks beat the U.S.
For global investors, 2025 delivered anything but a dull ride.
President Donald Trump’s return to the White House jolted markets early in the year, with his aggressive tariff agenda becoming one of the most market-moving developments of 2025. At the same time, the artificial-intelligence boom kept rolling, with gains spreading well beyond the “Magnificent Seven.”
Yet amid the excitement around crypto and cutting-edge technology, one of the year’s strongest investment stories came from assets humans have relied on for thousands of years: precious metals.
“In a year that was supposed to belong to crypto and extend the AI-driven bull market, two of the true standouts were investment vehicles that have existed for millennia — gold and especially silver,” said Steve Sosnick, chief strategist at Interactive Brokers. “They both dramatically outperformed a down year for crypto and even beat double-digit gains in major stock indexes.”
Metals stole the spotlight
The metals market surged in 2025, with extreme volatility in silver prompting the Chicago Mercantile Exchange to raise margin requirements twice in a single week.
After setting fresh records, gold finished the year up 64.4%, while silver soared 141.4% — both posting their biggest annual percentage gains since 1979. Copper also had a standout year, climbing 41.2% for its strongest annual advance since 2009, according to Dow Jones Market Data.
With China’s silver export controls taking effect on Jan. 1 and industrial demand for silver and copper expected to remain strong due to the data-center boom, supply constraints may continue to shape the metals market into 2026.
A historic comeback for U.S. stocks
Trump’s “liberation day” tariffs, announced after the close on April 2, sent the S&P 500 tumbling to the brink of bear-market territory as fears mounted that sweeping trade restrictions could derail global growth.
Stocks rebounded sharply after Trump announced a 90-day pause to allow time for negotiations. By June 27, the S&P 500 had reached a new closing high — its first since Feb. 19. The index recovered from a decline of more than 15% in just 89 days, the fastest such rebound on record, surpassing the previous 90-day recovery set in 1998.
From its April 8 closing low — when it was down 18.9% from its February peak — the rally was powerful. By year’s end, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 27.7% from its low, the Nasdaq Composite had surged 52.2%, and the S&P 500 had climbed 37.4%, marking their strongest recoveries from a yearly low since 2020.
Bitcoin stumbled after early promise
2025 was widely expected to be a breakout year for bitcoin. Trump campaigned as a crypto ally, enacted crypto-friendly policies, and nominated regulators seen as supportive of digital assets. Institutional adoption continued to grow, and more public companies embraced bitcoin as a treasury asset.
Still, the cryptocurrency fell short of expectations. After starting the year above $100,000, bitcoin plunged during April’s tariff-driven market selloff, dipping below $75,000 at its yearly low. Although it rebounded alongside risk assets and hit a record high of $126,184 in early October, those gains quickly unraveled.
Heavy selling by large holders pushed bitcoin into a bear market late in the year. It ended 2025 near $88,000 — roughly 30% below its peak and about 6% lower than where it began the yea
A tough year for the U.S. dollar
Trump’s tariffs and “America First” agenda weighed heavily on the dollar. The ICE U.S. Dollar Index fell 9.4% in 2025, marking its worst annual decline since 2017 and its seventh-worst year on record.
While some analysts have grown more optimistic after the U.S. economy avoided recession, Robin Brooks of the Brookings Institution warned the dollar still faces risks.
“One of the big puzzles of 2025 is that markets ignored President Trump encroaching on the Fed,” Brooks wrote. “As we head into 2026, markets may start to focus on that risk. It makes me more cautious on the dollar, even as consensus turns more bullish.”
International stocks took the lead
Stocks outside the U.S. had an exceptional year. While American markets posted solid gains — with the S&P 500 logging a third straight year of double-digit returns — international equities outperformed by their widest margin since 2009.
The MSCI All Country World ex-USA Index gained 29.3% in 2025, compared with a 16.4% rise for the S&P 500 — an outperformance of nearly 13 percentage points. That index is also on track for its best annual performance since 2009.
Strong performers included tech stocks in Hong Kong, Japan and South Korea, as well as European defense contractors and banks.
Taken together, 2025 delivered a clear message to investors: despite the hype around crypto and AI, old-world assets like gold and silver — and markets beyond U.S. borders — ultimately stole the show.
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