Global stock markets performed well in 2025, even though the year was marked by military, trade, and technological conflicts. Globally, the MSCI All-Country World Index rose 21.2%, which is its best performance since 2019.
The CAC 40 ended 2025 up 10.4%, erasing its 2024 decline, despite the shock caused in April by the announcement of the new US trade policy following the inauguration of Donald Trump. The Euro Stoxx 50 index rose 18%. The European market has been driven by the defense sector – as it has since the beginning of the conflict in Ukraine – but also by the financial and energy sectors amidst the race for artificial intelligence.
The US economy remained strong. Despite the trade war, persistent inflation and the general weakening of the US labor market, the major US indexes ended 2025 sharply higher, leading the global market trend.
The Federal Reserve cut rates three times in 2025, reducing its key rate by 75 basis points to a range of 3.50% to 3.75%. The announcement in December of the end of quantitative tightening marked a significant turning point in US monetary policy and sent a signal of confidence in the resilience of the economy. This easing, as well as a possible rate cut in 2026, creates a more accommodative monetary environment, which investors interpret as a positive signal for risky assets. This risk appetite is confirmed by the sharp 21% rise in the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite.
The “Magnificent Seven,” which account for a quarter of the MSCI World Index, are set to remain the market’s benchmark for the foreseeable future. Beyond the "tariff" war, doubts about the often excessive valuation level of these artificial intelligence giants, led by Nvidia (+39.7%), caused Wall Street to fall in November, raising fears of a market turnaround. Despite everything, the attractiveness of these stocks remains at this stage.
Asian markets have also been driven by the craze for artificial intelligence. In 2025, Seoul’s Kospi index, half of whose market capitalization is made up of technology stocks, soared by 76%. The Chinese stock market, long undermined by the real estate crisis, rose sharply. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index climbed 27.5%, mainly thanks to the performance of tech giants: Alibaba (+73.3%), Baidu (+59%) and Tencent (+43.7%). Finally, in Japan, the Nikkei had a good year (+26.2%), as investors returned to the region’s big tech names after years of disaffection.
In 2025, the STOXX 600 Media index for European media fell 15%, compared to +17% for the STOXX 600 Europe. The market capitalization in dollars of the main advertising agencies declined by an average of 13% in 2025 due to macro-economic (tariffs in the United States) and geopolitical uncertainties (multiple conflicts). The sector was also penalized by fears related to the rise of generative artificial intelligence tools, the slowdown in average organic growth, as well as problems specific to certain players. Within the advertising agency sector, performance was very mixed. Only Havas saw its stock price rise (+5%) thanks to resilient performance and a favorable year-over-year comparison, particularly given the significant inflow of funds following Vivendi’s spin-off in 2024. Despite better-than-expected operational performance, Publicis shares fell 14% in a context of declining valuations for the sector and the impact of currency depreciation on EPS estimates throughout the year. Omnicom shares fell 6% due to a compression in valuation multiples and fears related to the execution of the integration of Interpublic. WPP shares lost nearly 60% due to deteriorating operating performance and valuation, while Dentsu’s share price fell 13% due to weakness in its international division.
Publicis Groupe’s financial communications are committed to providing precise, transparent and truthful information about the Groupe’s position to all financial markets within the framework of the current texts, standards and procedures in France: the Financial Security Law and the IFRS (International Financial Reporting Standards). The Publicis Groupe Investor Relations Department maintains a close, ongoing dialogue with both the brokerage company and investment fund analysts. Publicis Groupe’s financial communications with institutional investors is conducted via the organization of meetings in the world’s major financial markets, and by the participation of Group representatives at investor conferences.
In 2025, Publicis Groupe met with around 2,000 institutional investors at private meetings (roadshows, industry investor conferences and meetings on request).
