NEW YORK, NEW YORK – DECEMBER 29: Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on the last day of trading for the year on December 29, 2023 in New York City. The Dow was up slightly in morning trading in what has been a strong year for the stock market despite many economists predictions that the American economy would experience a recession. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
Spencer Platt | Getty Images News | Getty Images
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What you need to know today
Last trading day of 2023 U.S. stocks fell Friday, disappointing investors who were hoping the S&P 500 would close the year on a record high. Still, it was a mighty good year for major indexes. Europe’s Stoxx 600 index added 0.2%, giving it a 12.6% gain for the year. Germany’s DAX posted more impressive gains, rising 20.31% despite the country’s gloomy economic outlook.
Nasdaq rebound The Nasdaq Composite popped 43% in 2023, its best year since 2020. Only 2020 and 2009 saw bigger gains for the tech-heavy index, which is all the more impressive considering how the Nasdaq plunged 33% in 2022. What changed last year? The biggest story: Investors returned to risk, driven by a surge in generative artificial intelligence and the U.S. Federal Reserve halting rate hikes.
Bullish on bitcoin Bitcoin rallied about 152% in 2023 despite high-profile criminal cases against cryptocurrency exchanges FTX and Binance. Bitcoin was last trading slightly above $44,000 — and many industry executives think the cryptocurrency’s poised for a new bull run, thanks to an event known as “halving” and the potential approval of a bitcoin exchange-traded fund in the U.S.
Price-sensitive consumers U.S. companies are losing their pricing power. During the pandemic, consumers splurged on goods — and when the pandemic was over, services, like eating out and traveling, were in hot demand. Companies took advantage of that willingness to spend and increased their prices to pad their earnings. But in 2023, consumers are cutting back — and it’s affecting Wall Street.
[PRO] Things to look forward to Investors have reason to be optimistic in 2024, writes CNBC’s Sarah Min. The three interest rate cuts that the Federal Reserve has penciled in for this year will likely be a tide that lifts all boats, meaning that last year’s Magnificent Seven-driven rally should broaden out. But not everyone’s so bullish about 2024.
The bottom line
Instead of ending the year with a bang by surpassing its all-time high, the S&P 500 let out a whimper — to paraphrase the poet T.S. Eliot’s famous lines — and fell 0.28% on the last trading day of 2023.
As with any market move, it’s hard to attribute any definitive reason to it. I think, however, the S&P’s December rally was too reliant on the Federal Reserve’s dovish pivot. Without further positive news, and with the optimism priced in already, the S&P didn’t have a concrete reason to rise further.
Moreover, several analysts have pointed out that stocks are already priced above their fair valuation; that is, the price of a stock may be too high relative to its earnings per share.
“Arguably, the bull market is overbought, and there are too many bulls,” Ed Yardeni of Yardeni Research wrote. Echoing that sentiment, Sarat Sethi, managing partner at DCLA, told CNBC he thinks “valuations are stretched.”
Still, let’s not throw away the baby with the bathwater. Friday’s disappointing session aside, 2023 has been a banner year for a huge swathe of the market. Here are, in my book, the biggest winners and losers of last year:
Winners
U.S. indexes: For 2023, the S&P jumped 24.23%, the Dow gained 13.8% and the Nasdaq rocketed 43.42%.
Bitcoin: Shrugging off the high-profile criminal cases against FTX and Binance, bitcoin surged around 152%.
Gold: The precious metal recorded its first annual gain since 2020 of 13%, as geopolitical risks and peak interest rates made gold shinier to investors.
Losers
Although part of financial journalism necessarily involves making predictions, a quick glance at that list shows how difficult it is to do so. Going into 2023, many thought a recession was in the cards. Instead, markets were dealt a winning hand. Here’s hoping 2024 thwarts all the negative predictions and delivers positive surprises too.
Hyundai offered a first look at the hot hatch earlier this week after unveiling the Concept Three, its first compact EV under the IONIQ family. The new EV, set to arrive as the IONIQ 3, already has a sporty, hot hatch look, but that could be just the start.
Hyundai has a new EV hot hatch in the making
The Concept Three took the spotlight at IAA Mobility in Munich with a daring new look from Hyundai. Based on its new “Art of Steel” design, the concept is a stark contrast to the Hyundai vehicles on the road today.
Hyundai took the “Aero Hatch” design to the next level, deeming it “a new typology that reimagines the compact EV silhouette.” And that it does.
When it arrives in production form in mid-2026, it’s expected to take the IONIQ 3 name as a smaller, more affordable sibling to the IONIQ 5.
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Hyundai is set to unveil the electric hatchback next spring with an official launch planned in Europe in September 2026. According to Hyundai’s European boss, Xavier Martinet, the IONIQ 3 could make for the perfect EV hot hatch.
The Hyundai Concept THREE EV, a preview of the IONIQ 3 (Source: Hyundai)
Martinet hinted that the IONIQ 3 could receive the “N” treatment, telling Auto Express that “The concept is quite sporty, and obviously you have heritage with N brand.” Hyundai’s European boss added that “it’s a fair topic to consider.”
Although it doesn’t sound too convincing, Hyundai’s head of design, Simon Loasby, called it “an opportunity.” Loasby was quick to add, “We’re not calling it N, it’s not approved yet.”
The Hyundai Concept THREE EV, a preview of the IONIQ 3 (Source: Hyundai)
“But I think everyone in the company is realising what Europe needs, and that’s compact hot hatches, so it’s a topic for discussion,” Hyundai’s design boss added.
The Concept Three is 4,287 mm long, 1,940 mm wide, and 1,428 mm tall, with a wheelbase of 2,722 mm, or about the size of the Kia EV3 and Volkswagen ID.3. Both of which are set for hot hatch variants.
The Hyundai Concept THREE EV, a preview of the IONIQ 3 (Source: Hyundai)
If the IONIQ 3 N does come to life, it will be the third Hyundai EV to receive the high-performance upgrade, following the IONIQ 5 N and IONIQ 6 N.
The IONIQ 5 N “was just the first lap,” according to Joon Park, vice president of Hyundai’s N Brand Management Group. He told Auto Express that Hyundai is “at the starting line” and plans to apply what it learned from its first EV hot hatch to upcoming models.
If you’re looking for an affordable electric hot hatch, Hyundai already offers one. After Hyundai cut lease prices last month, the IONIQ 5 N is now listed at just $549 per month. That’s $150 less per month than in July.
The global wind industry is going to hit some unprecedented growth milestones, according to Wood Mackenzie’s Global Wind Power Market Outlook for Q3 2025. The world is on track to add its second terawatt of wind capacity by 2030. To put that in perspective, it took 23 years to install the first terawatt, which was reached in 2023. The second will come in just seven.
Wind is also set for a record-breaking year in 2025. Global additions are expected to reach 170 gigawatts (GW), with more than 70 GW coming online in the last quarter of the year alone. That means Q4 could add more capacity than the total installed in any full year before 2020.
This forecast represents a 13% jump from the previous quarter, primarily driven by explosive onshore growth in China. Global wind capacity is expected to double from 2024 levels by 2032. Outside of China, the industry is also expanding, though on a slower path. Excluding China, the world will reach 1 terawatt in 2031 and double 2024 capacity by 2034.
However, policy uncertainty and the Trump administration’s hostility toward the wind industry, particularly offshore wind, are negatively impacting the US market. Trump’s big bill act (OBBBA), passed in July 2025, ends tax credits after 2027. That’s sparked a rush of projects in the short term, but it drags down the long-term outlook. For the first time, the US has fallen behind India and Germany in forecasted 10-year additions.
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“China’s dominance in the wind industry is becoming more pronounced,” said Sasha Bond-Smith, research analyst at Wood Mackenzie. “While other established markets struggle with policy uncertainty and economic headwinds, we’re witnessing an unequalled concentration of growth in China that’s reshaping the industry landscape.”
China’s onshore forecast jumped this quarter thanks to rising electricity demand from data centers and electrification. Wind is proving more profitable than solar in liberalized power markets, but China’s offshore wind sector is facing challenges. Sea-use conflicts are slowing or even halting projects already under construction.
Despite those hurdles, Wood Mackenzie now projects that wind could match solar’s power output in China over the forecast period. That would cement wind’s central role in helping the country meet climate goals while keeping up with surging power demand.
Elsewhere, onshore wind remains steady across Europe, Asia Pacific, and emerging markets, with tender results and pipelines supporting progress. Offshore wind is struggling, though. High costs and failed tenders are creating setbacks in Europe and delays in emerging markets. Policymakers are under pressure to rethink contract structures to keep projects moving.
“The wind industry’s most significant transformation in decades continues to unfold,” said Kárys Prado, senior research analyst at Wood Mackenzie. “While achieving historic scale, success will depend on how effectively the industry navigates this new geography of growth and adapts to evolving policy landscapes.”
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