📈 Global Stock Markets: Top Performers and Laggards in First Half of 2025

Between December 2024 and June 2025, European stock markets led global performance, according to S&P Global. Poland (+53.4%), the Czech Republic (+45.2%), Austria (+39.1%), Hungary (+38.0%), Luxembourg (+36.2%), Greece (+34.5%), Spain (+34.0%), and Germany (+28.3%) recorded the strongest gains—while Denmark was a notable exception, falling by 3.3%.

In contrast, markets in Southeast Asia and the Middle East underperformed, with the steepest declines in Thailand (−19.6%), Saudi Arabia (−11.0%), Indonesia (−8.0%), Turkey (−5.7%), and Malaysia (−2.6%). South Korea stood out in the region with a strong gain of +38.7%.