A Steady Look Back at the Markets: What 2025 Really Reminded Us
If you followed the news closely last year, it would have been easy to feel uneasy about the markets.
Headlines were constant.
Volatility showed up in familiar waves.
Economic uncertainty remained part of the conversation.
And yet — despite all of that — equity markets ended 2025 in positive territory overall.
Canadian equities stood out in particular, benefiting from strength in areas like energy, materials, and financials. At times, they outperformed many global markets, including the U.S. Precious metals also had a strong year, serving as a reminder that different asset classes tend to shine in different market environments.
Taken together, 2025 reinforced something long-term investors often forget during noisy years: markets don’t move in unison. Leadership rotates. And outcomes are rarely as dramatic as the headlines suggest.
Once again, the news and media proved to be far more fear inducing than the actual results.
Why Diversification Keeps Showing Up
One of my favourite visuals when it comes to investing is the Callan Periodic Table of Investment Returns.
Not because it predicts anything — but because it does the opposite.
It shows annual returns for different asset classes, ranked from best to worst, year by year. And what becomes obvious very quickly is this: nothing stays on top for long.
The asset class that performs best one year can just as easily land near the bottom the next. There’s no consistent winner, just rotation.
This is why diversification matters far more than trying to guess what will outperform next.
Putting all your money into one asset class — whether that’s stocks, real estate, bonds, or a single strategy — increases risk, even if it feels safer in the moment. Markets move. Cycles change. Volatility is uncomfortable, but it’s also normal.
A well-diversified portfolio isn’t about avoiding ups and downs.
It’s about not being overly exposed to any one thing when those swings happen.
Callan Periodic Table of Investment Returns
What Actually Matters, Year After Year
Trying to predict which market or asset class will lead next is rarely a productive strategy.
What does tend to matter — year after year — is having a solid foundation:
a clear strategy
investments aligned with your goals and time horizon
a level of risk you truly understand and can live with
the ability to stay steady when markets feel uncomfortable
a long-term lens that keeps short-term noise in check
And, most importantly, the discipline to stay committed to that approach.
Investing well has very little to do with prediction — and far more to do with consistency and context.
Confidence Comes from Clarity, Not Headlines
It’s one thing to read about markets in general.
It’s another to feel genuinely confident about your situation.
Confidence comes from knowing:
what you own and why
whether your investments align with what you’re working toward
how much risk you’re truly taking
whether action is needed — or whether staying put is the right move
That kind of clarity doesn’t come from headlines or hot takes.
It comes from understanding how your investments fit into the bigger picture of your life.
And that’s where planning matters.
A Grounded Next Step
If reading this has you wondering how all of this applies to your own situation, I offer 30-minute virtual meetings designed to simply look at the bigger picture.
A space to talk things through, ask questions, and determine what the most appropriate next step might be — whether that’s a deeper review, planning support, or reassurance that you’re on track.
Sometimes one conversation is all it takes to replace uncertainty with clarity.