The stock market boom of the Obama years

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President Obama has presided over some of the best years to invest of the last century, The New York Times reports. The stock market has risen 11.8 percent on an annualized basis since Obama took office, the third best performance during an American presidency since 1900. Market performance was only better under Calvin Coolidge (25.5 percent) and Bill Clinton (15.9 percent).

Consider that had you been prescient enough to buy shares of a low-cost stock index fund on Mr. Obama's first inauguration day, on Jan. 20, 2009, you would now have tripled your money. Stock market performance of this level has rarely been surpassed. [The New York Times]

Now, presidents often don't deserve direct credit for market performance. Part of the trend just comes down to timing: With the economy in such a sorry state around the time Obama came into office, any vague signs of recovery naturally sent the market marching upward. The Federal Reserve has also pushed an "extraordinarily accommodative monetary policy," which began before Obama even took office. You can read more about the reasons behind the stock boom of the Obama years at The New York Times.