Breaking news

Wall Street’s Outlook For The S&P 500 In 2025: Strong Growth Expected

by THEFUTURE.TEAM

December 4, 2024

Wall Street analysts are projecting continued strong returns for the S&P 500 in 2025, with most major banks forecasting a third consecutive year of impressive performance for the index, which tracks the 500 largest public U.S. companies. Investors are buoyed by the ongoing bull market, which is expected to continue into the next year.

Key Predictions

Bank of America: The bank expects the S&P 500 to reach 6,666 by the end of 2025, marking a 10% increase from its current level of 6,050. Analysts, led by Savita Subramanian, attribute this growth to favorable macroeconomic factors, including lower interest rates, increased labor productivity, and a corporate environment of rising profits. Subramanian adds that “the average stock is more attractive than the entire index.”
BMO Capital Markets: This Canadian institution predicts the S&P 500 will hit 6,700 points by year-end, implying an 11% growth. Chief strategist Brian Belsky notes that earnings growth is currently undervalued, and rate cuts by the Federal Reserve should support further gains.
Deutsche Bank: Setting the highest target on Wall Street, Deutsche Bank forecasts a 16% rise, predicting the S&P 500 will end 2025 at 7,000 points. Strategists, including Binky Chadha, suggest that increased capital spending outside of big tech, a global economic recovery, and rising M&A activity will contribute to this strong performance.
Evercore ISI: Focusing on technology, Evercore predicts 6,600 points by mid-2025. Strategists led by Julian Emanuel believe the bull market is “still in its infancy,” signaling the potential for ongoing growth.
Goldman Sachs: With a target of 6,500 points (+9%), Goldman Sachs anticipates continued U.S. economic expansion and an 11% increase in earnings per share, driving market growth.
Morgan Stanley: Morgan Stanley also sets a target of 6,500 points but provides a broader range of potential outcomes, from a bullish scenario of 7,400 points (+26%) to a bearish scenario of 4,600 points (-28%).
UBS: Forecasting 6,600 points by the end of 2025, UBS expects a 10% gain, bolstered by the return of Donald Trump to the presidency, which has accelerated positive market sentiment.
Yardeni Research: This independent firm is even more optimistic, predicting the S&P 500 will reach 7,000 points by the end of 2025, reflecting a 19% increase. Yardeni’s forecast is rooted in the potential economic benefits of a “Trump 2.0” administration.

Big Number

Yardeni Research also predicts that the S&P 500 could climb as high as 10,000 by 2029, anticipating a strong annualized return of 16%.

Follow THE FUTURE on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, X and Telegram

Key Story

The S&P 500 is on track for a 27% year-to-date gain, surpassing its 23% rise in 2023. This would mark the first time the index has gained at least 20% in two consecutive years since the internet boom between 1995 and 1998. With a 58% rise since the end of 2022, the S&P is poised for its best two-year performance since the late 1990s.

Much of the recent growth has been driven by major tech companies like Amazon, Meta, Nvidia, and Tesla, which have each seen over 150% growth since the end of 2022, defying the pressures of a high-interest rate environment.

The Future Forbes Realty Global Properties

by News Editor

August 24, 2026

Courts Are Still Applying Old Copyright Rules To AI

AI companies train models on enormous amounts of published material, including books, articles and academic research. Whether using that content without authors’ permission violates copyright law remains unresolved.

Much of the debate centres on fair use, which allows copyrighted material to be used without permission in certain circumstances. Courts consider factors such as the purpose of the use, how much material was involved and its impact on the original market.

Follow THE FUTURE on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, X and Telegram

Anthropic Case Sets An Important Precedent

A major case involving Anthropic and a group of authors provided one of the clearest rulings so far. Judge William Alsup found that using copyrighted books to train AI models was lawful, comparing the process to people reading and studying literature before creating something new.

Anthropic was nevertheless ordered to pay $1.5 billion in a settlement. The penalty concerned books the company had obtained from illegal online libraries rather than the AI training itself.

For AI companies, that distinction could prove significant because it separates studying copyrighted material from directly copying it.

Competition Could Be The Key Issue

A case involving Thomson Reuters and Ross Intelligence offers a different perspective. A court ruled that Ross could not claim fair use after using Reuters’ copyrighted material to develop a competing AI-powered legal research platform.

The decision suggests courts may be less willing to consider AI training fair use when copyrighted content is used to build a product that directly competes with the original.

For authors, an unresolved question is whether AI-generated content should be considered competition for the works used to train these models.

The Law Has Yet To Catch Up

US copyright law predates generative AI by decades, leaving courts to apply old principles to new technology. Questions also remain over copyright protection for AI-generated works. In Thaler v. Perlmutter, a court ruled that material created entirely by AI cannot receive copyright protection.

Major AI companies remain involved in copyright litigation, and different courts could reach different conclusions. For now, there is no universal rule: the legality of AI training will depend on the circumstances of each case and how courts ultimately interpret copyright and fair use.