There is always something working in the Markets.  It still surprises me how often it changes.

A look at the recent winners and losers (based on year-end performance) shows the volatility and varied nature of this list.

Who would have guessed the big winners this year would be Coffee and Cattle (though most of those gains came in the first half of the year)?

The chart below shows the top-and-bottom performing markets for the year.  The data is color coded based on sector. The first column shows 2014 performance, followed by five columns of the most recent prior yearly market performances.

Click the image to jump to the full chart.

 

 

Click this link to view weekly, monthly, quarterly, and yearly views of this data.

So, how did the U.S market compare to other markets around the world? Here is an interactive chart showing how the S&P 500 out-performed this past year.