As 2025 drew to a close, markets continued to digest the after-effects of aggressive policy shifts in prior years. Q4 2025 didn’t bring new shocks but instead reinforced themes that had been building throughout the year. The quarter provided a moment of relative stability across asset classes, with monetary policy becoming clearer but fiscal constraints coming into sharper focus. This piece explores how Q4 played out across markets, what 2025 taught investors more broadly, and what 2026 may have in store – through a lens of cautious realism rather than bold forecasting.