Donald Trump broke records in 2025, but Donald Trump continues to scream tariffs from the White House. Investors are clearly not fluttering. They’ve heard it before. And this time, they’re not withdrawing money from the system.
According to CNBC, MSCI All Country World Indef, which tracks more than 2,500 stocks worldwide, jumped nearly 10% from January, hitting an all-time high on July 4th.
Greece, Poland and the Czech Republic lead the Global Pack with the annual large profits. Greece rose nearly 60%, Poland reached 56% and Czech Republic at 52%, with everyone defeating the US.
Europe is craving American stocks
Greek equity surges are supported by a mix of bank profits, economic recovery and tourists. Gabriel Sachs, who leads global emerging market stocks in Aberdeen, said Greece has been ahead in Eastern Europe for some time thanks to the economy bounced, cleaned banks and strong tourism season. Investors also liked that the Greek government began to pay off its relief debt early and continued to implement its financial surplus.
George Efstathopoulos, multi-asset manager at Fidelity International, said Greek stocks should continue to climb because of how well the Greek banks are doing. Poland and the Czech Republic continued to be close, delivering strong performances from the beginning of the year. Of the 10 top performance markets around the world, eight are in Europe. Along with Greece, Poland and the Czech Republic, other top performers include Spain, Italy and Germany.
Michael Field, EMEA Chief Equity Market Strategist at Morningstar, said earlier this year that “American America” trends and improvements in European economic numbers have led to cash in these markets. Michel Gibbly, Schwab’s director of international research, said Germany’s departure from austerity also helped fuel growth.
European defense and bank stocks perform less risk from US tariffs. Mark Mobius, chairman of the Mobius Emerging Opportunities Fund, said these sectors are safer from Trump’s trade policy and still produce solid returns.
Meanwhile, US stocks were hit earlier this year as investors fled Trump’s chaotic economic message. However, in Midyear, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq recovered and managed to hit a fresh high. Still, their total growth this year is low compared to the booming European market.
Korea rises and Thailand crashes Asia splits
Asian performances are everywhere. Korea is one of the few bright spots, with over 30% since the start of the year. It came despite Trump placing a 25% tariff on South Korean exports and political drama in his hometown. Daniel Yu, global strategist at Yunta Securities, said the market is already anticipating and priced tariffs. He believes that if the speech is dragged through August 1st, their tariffs could still be reduced.
Manishi Raychaudhuri, CEO of Emmer Capital Partners, said Korean exporters may survive Trump’s trade hits as Korean exporters will probably only eat extra fees. Investors were also optimistic after opposition Lee Jae-myeon won the snap election in June and replaced Yoon Sook-yeol. Yoon was kicked out earlier this year after attempting to declare martial law. Kai Wang, a senior analyst at Morningstar, said sectors such as shipbuilding and high-bandwidth AI chip manufacturing have helped drive South Korea’s growth.
China’s stock market has risen more than 17% this year, even while staying on Trump’s crosshairs. Steven Sun, research director at HSBC Qianhai Securities, said he hopes investors will be strengthening, improving revenue and supporting policies. However, he warns that no major stimulus is planned, which leaves pressure on China’s overall growth.
Thailand is at the bottom. That market fell by more than 13% in 2025, dragging it into US car rates, which were hit by political turmoil, weak tourism and exports of Thai car parts. Sachs said the country is still trying to crawl from a slump during the COVID era.
Just above Thailand is Turkey, where inflation, capital flight and political crackdown continue to scare investors. Sachs said hopes for recovery had disappeared when the mayor of Istanbul was arrested. Mobius added that Turkish Lira, which collapsed almost 13% against the US dollar, was no help either.
