The AEX index, the leading stock market index in Amsterdam, rose by a quarter in 2019. This is the largest increase in a year since 2009.
The AEX index started the year at 486 points and ends this Friday at 14.00 at 604 points, an increase of no less than 24 percent. The increase is high because last year stock markets were still down. Then the AEX fell by 10 percent in a year.
The AEX index has almost doubled in the last ten years. The Amsterdam stock exchange stood at 335 points on 31 December 2009. The index has thus risen by 80 percent in the last decade. These calculations do not take into account the profit distributions of companies.
The substantial profit this year is especially remarkable if you list all the geopolitical problems. A chaotic British departure from the EU hung above the market like a sword of Damocles, as did the import tariffs that US President Donald Trump actually set and the tariffs that he threatened to introduce.
Small sprint due to provisional trade agreement between the US and China
Furthermore, last year there was increasing doubt about the growth prospects in Europe and the United States. In many countries, economic growth has come to a lower end. A provisional trade agreement between the United States and China eventually gave the deciding factor to start a small sprint in the last month.
Central banks worldwide have therefore taken measures to lower interest rates a little and stimulate their economies.
Investors remain optimistic. Not only the AEX index breaks records. Equities are also reaching new heights in the rest of Europe and the United States.
– .
