2025 Is Almost In The Books — Here’s a Recap of Our Standout “Average Joe” Moments From a Wild Year
With the final trading bell of 2025 about to ring, it’s time to close the books on what may have been the most dramatic year in recent memory — and that’s saying something after the chaos of 2024. Markets soared, crashed, recovered, and left investors dizzy from whiplash. Today marks our final edition of The Average Joe for the year — so let’s recap the madness.
2025, unwrapped: This year threw everything at us, from tariff wars that nearly broke the market to a government shutdown that somehow didn’t tank stocks. We covered record-shattering winners and brutal losers that couldn’t catch a break, while AI mania pushed valuations into nosebleed territory and concentration risk climbed to heights not seen since the dot-com era.
- We highlighted Wall Street’s biggest comebacks — like chipmaker IntelINTC, which staged a stunning 90% rally after Nvidia and Uncle Sam basically saved it, plus underdog tech stories, including GoogleGOOGL, which shocked rivals with a lead in the AI race.
- We didn’t sugarcoat the disasters either — including energy giants ExxonMobilXOM and ChevronCVX, which posted record production but falling profits as oil prices swayed.
- We broke down the year’s biggest dramas — the DeepSeek AI shock, Liberation Day’s tariff panic, the (surprisingly chill) government shutdown, and much more.
Breaking It Down
Beyond the household names, we dug into stories most outlets ignore — like the rare earth export panic that sent mining stocks parabolic (before reality set in), the banking bonanza that made GoldmanGS and JPMorganJPM look like wealth printers, and why Bitcoin’s wild run ended with a face-plant back to Earth.
- We covered the Fed’s three rate cuts that kept the party alive, even as Jay Powell threw cold water on future easing with that hawkish December pivot.
- Retail taught us lessons too — discount chains crushed department stores as consumers split between value-hunting and splurging, with CostcoCOST winning through strategic moves.
- We also tracked crypto’s rollercoaster ride, healthcare’s prescription drug showdown, and the nuclear renaissance powering AI’s appetite for electricity.
- Finally, we celebrated the one-year anniversary of our personal-finance-focused Sunday Rise & Grind edition, featuring standout stories on premium travel, 0% APR credit cards, and tax credits.
Before we log off: If The Average Joe helped you navigate this wild year, the best gift you could give us is sharing with a friend. Spreading knowledge is what keeps us going — along with excessive caffeine consumption. While 2025 is basically wrapped, our 2026 resolution is simple: keep delivering stories that help you make sense of the markets.
We’re taking a short holiday break, but we’ll be back in your inbox Fri., Jan. 2 with a new year of fresh banter, sharp stock ideas, and hopefully less volatility (fingers crossed). Until then, Happy Holidays and Happy New Year!