By Alice Fulwood, Wall Street Editor, The Economist

WHAT A DIFFERENCE a year ago. As The world to come in 2024 went to press in November 2023, the S&P500, the flagship index of American stocks, was in the doldrums. Stock prices were 15% off their peak in early 2022. A graph of the index’s performance over the previous two years looked like a mountain range: pushed up and down due to inflation fears, compromised by rising interest rates and spooked by fears of slowing growth. . Reflecting on what 2024 might bring, your correspondent said that after a few years of deep uncertainty, investors may finally get enough information about the state of the economy to decide whether to rejoice or be unfortunate.