A soft finish to 2024 still left stocks with a second straight stellar year. The S&P 500 logged a 23.3% gain, which follows a 24% rise in 2023. The combined gains of more than 53% was the largest two-year percentage jump for the index since year-end 1998,

Wall Street strategists see further gains for the S&P 500 in 2025 as a broadening of earnings growth and a resilient US economy continue to drive the bull market rally.

U.S. stock indexes are starting 2025 with gains, putting Wall Street on track to break a four-day losing streak that dimmed the end of its stellar 2024. The S&P 500 rose 0.6% at the open of trading Thursday following its longest losing streak since early September.

The S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC) rocketed 23% in 2024, marking the second consecutive year in which the benchmark index gained more than 20%, something it last did in 1998. Factors contributing to that upside include strong economic growth,

The Standard & Poor’s 500 gave up an early gain to finish down 0.4%. The benchmark index, which set 57 record highs in 2024, racked up a 23.3% gain for the year. This was its second straight year with a gain of more than 20%. The last time the index had as big a back-to-back annual gain was 1998.

Investors head into the new year believing the economy on a firm footing. That wasn’t the case at the start of 2024, when even the most bullish analysts underestimated the strength of the market.

S&P 500 futures are up 0.6%. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures are gaining 0.4%. Nasdaq 100 futures are adding 0.8%. On Tuesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 30 points, or 0.07%, to 42,544,

U.S. stock indexes are starting 2025 with some modest moves. The S&P 500 rose 0.3% in early Thursday trading and was on track to break a four-day losing streak, its

Stocks opened higher in the final session of 2024 but quickly ran out of steam. At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.07% at 42,544, the S&P 500 was off 0.4% to 5,881, and the Nasdaq Composite was 0.