Can global mkts keep rising? Financial history favours investing outside US

I am less positive than many on the US equity markets and American exceptionalism. I worry about elevated valuations, surging retail sentiment

Risk assets had a good run in 2024, with Bitcoin, gold and US equities in particular outperforming. The S&P 500 index in the US experienced its second consecutive year of returns exceeding 25 per cent. The last time US equities delivered two consecutive years of over 20 per cent returns was during the dot-com bubble in 1997-98. As has been the norm, emerging market (EM) assets lagged, with EM equities up only 8 per cent for the year, and European equities rising by 9.5 per cent. American exceptionalism was alive and well! Gold outperformed equities, as it has over the