The year was defined by new interest rate cuts from both the ECB and the Fed, volatility surrounding a potential AI bubble, bouts of panic in debt markets, and the return of Donald Trump to power in the United States, whose protectionist stance proved somewhat less aggressive than markets had initially feared.
In December, the IBEX rose by 5.7%, notching its sixth consecutive monthly gain—the best streak since the seven months between January 2013 and June 2014—and its largest monthly jump since May.
The Spanish stock market's annual surge outpaced other exchanges, largely due to the heavier weighting of the banking sector (over 40% of the IBEX), whose institutions saw strong revaluations fueled by improved margins from high interest rates, record profits, and increased dividends.
Banks dominated the annual rankings from second to sixth place: Santander +125%, Unicaja +118%, BBVA +112%, CaixaBank +99%, and Bankinter +85%.
At the very top were Indra (+184%), buoyed by increased defense spending in Europe, and Solaria (+132%), driven by robust growth in revenue and profits, new energy contracts, and capacity expansion.
On the flip side, cosmetics group Puig fell by 16.6%—hit by expectations of slower sector growth following its IPO—while Telefónica lost 11.3% for the year, weighed down by the valuation of divestments in Latin America, a dividend cut, and debt pressures.
Looking ahead to 2026, market observers are focusing on the U.S. midterm elections in November, the appointment of a new Federal Reserve (Fed) chair to take office in May, as well as ongoing negotiations to halt the war between Russia and Ukraine.
Bankinter analysts highlight in their report for the first quarter of 2026 that their "investment strategy remains pro-risk, favorable for equities and bonds, in a market supported by abundant liquidity—private, but also stemming from central banks that continue to pursue extreme monetarism, which underpins asset prices—in a context of low interest rates—which will continue to fall in the United States, though perhaps not as much as generally expected—and non-problematic inflation."
"All of this is wrapped in a sufficiently expansive economic cycle (...) which allows corporate earnings to grow at a low double-digit pace, a decisive factor for valuations and the evolution of equities in the medium and long term," they add.
On Wednesday (with trading closing at 14:00 for New Year's Eve, and the market remaining closed on Thursday for New Year celebrations), the IBEX 35 ended with a drop of 47.10 points, or 0.27%, at 17,307.80 points, while the pan-European blue-chip index FTSE Eurofirst 300 slipped 0.08%.
For the month as a whole, the IBEX gained 5.72%; for the quarter, it rose 11.84%; and for the entirety of 2025, it registered a 49.27% increase.
(Reporting by Tomás Cobos)
