Stocks keep climbing, despite mounting worries. Ironically, it’s those very concerns, such as stubborn inflation and slowing growth, that prompted the Fed to deliver today’s widely expected quarter-point rate cut. We parse the latest developments. Plus, don’t miss our free video.
Dear Investor,
The market’s bull turned three this month and keeps hoofing up the wall of worry, untroubled by the dire headlines that are seemingly designed to stop it.
The S&P 500’s long-running rally began on October 12, 2022. Since then, the S&P 500 Total Return Index has gained approximately 118%, accounting for dividends reinvested during this period (as of market close October 28, 2025).
The equity resurgence, which kicked off as the pandemic started to ease, has been fueled by soaring technology stocks, particularly those involved in artificial intelligence (AI).
We think this bull market still has room to run, but caution is warranted. Valuations are clearly stretched, and a pullback seems likely. Even so, it probably won’t disrupt the market’s broader momentum.
Read on, for context and an examination of emerging opportunities, particularly in the booming field of crypto.
The Middle-Aged Bull
Over the past eight decades, the average bull market has lasted about five years and posted gains of around 200%. Many have made it well past the three-year mark, including the marathon run from 2009 to 2020.
Accordingly, today’s bull market isn’t particularly young or particularly old. History suggests age alone won’t end it. Recessions or a heavy-handed Federal Reserve usually do the job. At the moment, neither factor appears ready to crash the party.
Wall Street hates surprises and today the Fed didn’t deliver one. The central bank announced a quarter-point rate cut that was telegraphed so heavily it could have been written in skywriting.
The Fed is simply recognizing that the economy is slowing around the edges and inflation, while still sticky, is moving in the right direction.
We’ll see whether today’s rate cut marks the start of a full easing cycle or just a cautious nod to slowing growth. The immediate question for investors is whether the Fed is likely to cut again at its next meeting in December.
Complicating matters is the protracted government shutdown, which has wreaked havoc on the data reports that the Fed needs for guidance.
Passing the Baton to Earnings
Valuations have climbed to levels where investors will want to see corporate profits do the heavy lifting from here. Fortunately, earnings growth remains solid.
Nearly 60% of the S&P 500 will report results in the next two weeks, including the bulk of the Magnificent Seven, which are expected to cumulatively post year-over-year earnings growth of around 15%. The rest of the index is growing at a slower but still respectable pace.
Management teams continue to describe consumers as resilient and balance sheets as stable. The most interesting subplot is whether all this investment in AI infrastructure will finally start showing up in profit margins.
The S&P 500 has gone more than 100 days without even a modest pullback of 5%. A pause would be perfectly normal and arguably healthy, allowing earnings to catch up to prices.
There are a few scheduled plot twists ahead, including tariff negotiations and diplomatic dramas featuring familiar characters in Washington and Beijing.
Even so, I expect the bull to stay alive. Earnings growth looks durable. Fiscal policy is mildly supportive. The Fed is steering toward easing. And investors still have large sums sitting in cash-like instruments, ready to be redeployed once the fear of heights subsides.
We also expect stock market leadership to broaden. Cyclical sectors such as industrials and consumer discretionary look increasingly appealing. International small- and mid-caps also have room to gain ground.
The Crypto Edge
At the same time, investors are looking beyond traditional equities for growth. Cryptocurrencies, despite their volatility, continue to offer compelling outsized profits.
With increasing adoption across institutions, payment networks, and fintech applications, select digital assets are starting to behave less like speculative novelties and more like components of a diversified portfolio.
It’s been interesting to watch how quickly our readers have gravitated toward hands-on approaches to crypto. The questions we’ve been getting aren’t just “What should I buy?” but “How do I build a repeatable trading process?”
And that brings us to something we hadn’t originally planned to do.
The response to our recent crypto sessions has been so strong, we’ve decided to open one final opportunity to join the Crypto Trading Mastery Workshop.
We’re conducting a two-day intensive webinar from October 29–30, beginning today at 4:00 p.m. ET.
Rather than theory, this session will focus on practical, step-by-step application. The goal is simple: Help you go from interested observer to competent, confident crypto trader in a short, structured period of time.
If you’ve been meaning to get serious about your crypto investing strategy, this is likely the most direct way to do it right now.
This is the final window to enroll. Once the workshop begins, we don’t plan to run it again. If it feels like the right next step for you, you can review the details and secure your spot here.
The Crowd Shows Up Late. Be Early!
This bull market isn’t over. Not by a long shot. We’re already trading today’s surge, before the headlines even catch up. Let us show you how we spot these breakouts in real time.
Watch our free video before the next move detonates. Free Video: TSLA Setups and Targets