Global stock markets generated strong gains during the third quarter of 2025. The key drivers for global equities included expectations of interest rate cuts, strong corporate earnings, economic resilience across major global economic regions, strong liquidity, and risk-on sentiment. Increased confidence was also a key contributor as it appears that investors have become less fearful of the impact from President Trump’s tariff policies. The Magnificent Seven contributed to the market gains in the U.S. with an average return of 17.8% during the third quarter. Having said that, there was a wide divergence in performance among the Magnificent 7. For example, Meta and Amazon were relatively flat during the quarter while Alphabet and Tesla were up 38% and 40% respectively. All major developed market regions generated positive gains during the quarter. As seen in the chart below, market returns were strongest in Canada and Japan, while Europe was a laggard.