+3.4%

2025: +17% in dollars, +3% in euros

In 2025 the MSCI USA index rose 17.3% in dollars (MSCI). For a euro investor, the gain was only 3.4% (MSCI). The gap comes from the exchange rate: the euro rose from $1.0389 to $1.1750 over the year, a gain of 13.1% (ECB).

2025 return, in dollars and in euros. MSCI USA: +17.31% (USD), +3.43% (EUR); MSCI World: +21.09% (USD), +6.77% (EUR); MSCI Europe: +35.41% (USD), +19.39% (EUR). Calendar 2025, net total return. The euro rose from $1.0389 to $1.1750. Sources: MSCI factsheets in USD and EUR; ECB reference rates.

In the same year, MSCI Europe rose 19.4% in euros (MSCI). The MSCI World, three-quarters invested in the US, returned 21.1% in dollars and 6.8% in euros (MSCI, USD; MSCI, EUR).

The effect works both ways. By the end of September 2026, the MSCI World was up 15.6% in euros against 11.8% in dollars, because the dollar partly recovered. Over 27 years the euro has ended up close to where it started: $1.1789 in January 1999, $1.1205 on 22 October 2026 (ECB).

Buying US stocks also means buying dollars. Over 30 years that second bet weighs little; in a single year it can wipe out almost all of a gain.

General information published by copio. It is neither investment advice nor a personal recommendation. Past performance is not a guide to future performance.