Another year in the markets has come and gone, and honestly, looking back at 2025 feels a bit like riding a rollercoaster. There were those stomach-dropping moments when trades went south fast, but also the exhilarating highs when others soared. With major indices posting solid gains – both the US and UK benchmarks up around 17% – it was a decent environment for trading, yet not everything I suggested panned out perfectly.
In my experience, that’s just how active trading goes. You win some, you lose some, and the key is managing the downside while letting winners run. This time around, the successes on open positions more than made up for the hits on closed ones. Let’s dive into the details and see what we can learn from it all.
Reflecting on 2025: A Year of Mixed but Ultimately Positive Results
Starting the year with a handful of carryover ideas from the previous twelve months, I had a mix of long positions in established companies and a couple of shorts on what I saw as overvalued names. As always, the plan was to cut losses quickly on underperformers and hold onto the stronger ones. But 2025 took its time shaking things out.
Perhaps the most interesting aspect was how long some of those inherited trades lingered before hitting stops or targets. It wasn’t until deeper into the year that several got closed, and the results were decidedly mixed.
Carryover Positions: Profits and Pain in Equal Measure
I kicked off 2025 with eight open recommendations: six buys and two sells. Over the course of the year, all eventually closed, but the timing varied quite a bit.
One standout winner among the longs was a position in an airline stock that delivered a healthy gain before being closed out. On the flip side, retail and ticketing plays disappointed, resulting in notable losses. A short on a high-profile media company tied to political figures paid off nicely, while another short on an online grocery specialist added a modest profit.
Overall, five of the eight ended in the red. The net result from these inherited trades came in at around £500 positive – not terrible, but a step down from where they stood at the prior year-end. In trading, though, context matters. These were positions already in motion, and closing them methodically helped contain the damage.
- Strong gain on the airline long
- Solid profits from the politically-linked media short
- Smaller win on the online supermarket short
- Losses on several consumer-facing longs
I’ve found that carryover trades often reflect the momentum (or lack thereof) from the previous period. Some keep running, others reverse – and 2025 showed both sides clearly.
New Ideas Launched and Closed During the Year
Throughout 2025, I put forward around 18 fresh trading suggestions (19 if counting a pairs trade separately). Nine of these reached closure within the same year, and frankly, this batch leaned toward the challenging side.
A few shorts on speculative or struggling names started well but reversed sharply, leading to quick exits at losses. Buy-now-pay-later, telecom, drone, quantum computing, and e-commerce plays all contributed to the downside. Even some more traditional picks like soft drinks and vending machines didn’t move as hoped.
That said, there were bright spots. A timely long on a major video game publisher turned into one of the year’s best outcomes after takeover news emerged, delivering a substantial profit in a short timeframe.
Net from the closed new trades: roughly £3,100 down. Ouch on paper, but remember the philosophy – cut losing trades fast to preserve capital for better opportunities. It’s painful in the moment, yet essential over the long haul.
Trading success isn’t about batting a thousand; it’s about managing risk so the winners can outweigh the losers.
The Real Bright Spot: Ongoing Open Positions
Here’s where things get exciting. The recommendations still active heading into the new year have been performing strongly, more than compensating for earlier setbacks.
Among the longs, a telecom and mobile money operator in emerging markets has been the star of the show – up significantly and leading the pack. A solar panel manufacturer and a major UK bank are also comfortably in profit. A few others are slightly underwater, including retail home goods, food distribution, and even a direct bitcoin holding, but the gains dominate.
The short side looks particularly promising too. Positions against self-driving tech, electric vehicle startups, bitcoin-related firms, and data center players are all showing profits as those stories face headwinds.
Combined, these open trades sit at over £4,500 in unrealized gains. That’s the beauty of letting strong positions run while tightening protection.
- Emerging market telecom: standout performer with over £2,000 gain
- Solar energy play: solid £800+ profit
- UK banking giant: steady £500 gain
- Four shorts all contributing positively, totaling nearly £1,700
To protect these gains, it’s wise to move stop-loss levels higher. Trail them as prices advance – a simple yet powerful way to lock in profits while still giving room for further upside.
Key Takeaways and Adjustments Moving Forward
Looking at the full picture, 2025 delivered a positive outcome despite the visible losses along the way. The strategy of quick cuts on weak trades and patience with strong ones continues to hold up.
Markets rewarded certain themes – renewable energy exposure, value-oriented banking, emerging market growth stories – while punishing overhyped speculative areas. That’s classic market behavior: rotation happens, and staying adaptable matters.
One subtle opinion I’ll share: I’ve always believed active trading works best when combined with strict discipline. Emotions can wreck havoc, but rules around position sizing, stop losses, and profit-taking keep things rational.
| Category | Net Result | Comment |
| Carryover closes | +£498 | Mixed but slightly positive |
| New closes | -£3,133 | Quick cuts limited damage |
| Open positions | +£4,520 | Strong momentum continuing |
| Total impact | Positive overall | Winners offsetting losses |
What about risk management specifically? Raising stops on winners is crucial. It turns paper gains into realized protection. For the current longs and shorts showing strength, incrementally tightening those levels makes sense as momentum builds.
Another lesson reinforced this year: diversification across sectors and strategies helps. Having both longs and shorts, spanning consumer, tech, energy, financials, and even crypto exposure, smoothed the ride somewhat.
Why Discipline Beats Perfection Every Time
Let’s be real – nobody gets every trade right. Even in a bull market, individual ideas can flop spectacularly. The difference between consistent profitability and frustration often comes down to process.
Quick exits on losing trades preserve capital. Patience with winners lets compounding work its magic. Regular review and adjustment of stops keeps emotions in check.
In my view, perhaps the most underrated aspect of trading is psychological resilience. Seeing red numbers on closed trades stings, but remembering they’re part of a bigger strategy helps maintain perspective.
Looking Ahead: Staying Nimble in Changing Markets
As we move forward, markets will undoubtedly throw new curves. Interest rate paths, geopolitical shifts, technological disruption – all create both risks and opportunities.
The approach remains the same: identify asymmetric setups, manage risk ruthlessly, and let evidence guide decisions rather than hope.
Whether it’s spotting undervalued recovery stories, fading overextended hype, or capitalizing on sector rotation, staying flexible while adhering to core principles has served well through multiple market cycles.
Ultimately, 2025 reminded me why I enjoy this game. The intellectual challenge, the real-time feedback, the satisfaction when preparation meets opportunity – it’s rewarding on multiple levels.
And with open positions humming along nicely, there’s cautious optimism heading into the next chapter. Markets rarely move in straight lines, but solid process tends to win out over time.
Trading will always involve uncertainty, but reviewing past performance honestly helps sharpen the edge. Here’s to more informed decisions and continued learning in the year ahead.
