U.S. small-cap indices have pulled ahead of large-cap indices over the past three to six months, and through the first half of 2025, we anticipate further catch-up in both stock prices and, for higher-quality small caps, earnings growth. We believe government spending, tax cuts, trade realignments, deregulation and conducive industrial policies will boost US smaller businesses.
Inflation is coming down much faster than the ECB expected only last September, with the headline measure (2.2%) now inching very close to its target. The latest 25bp cut and its revised forecast on 12 December, suggest that the ECB should get to its target by mid-2025.