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James

U.S. stocks posted the biggest annual gain since 2003 and commodities rallied as the Federal Reserve kept its benchmark interest rate near zero and governments around the world enacted stimulus programs to halt the first global recession since World War II.

Click here for a wrap-up of the world’s markets in 2009. See the VIDEO tab above for more on the Year in Review from Bloomberg Television. Click here for a slideshow presentation from Bloomberg BusinessWeek magazine, “The Unbelievable Quotes, Acts and Ideas of 2009.”

Following are more stories looking back on the past year and previewing 2010.

Citigroup, Marshall & Ilsley Post Biggest S&P Drops

Dec. 31 (Bloomberg) -- Citigroup Inc. and Marshall & Ilsley Corp. were among the worst performing stocks in the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index this year, dragged down by defaults on commercial and residential property loans that may extend declines into 2010.

U.S. Treasuries Post Worst Performance Among Sovereign Markets

Dec. 31 (Bloomberg) -- Treasuries fell, posting the worst performance this year among sovereign debt markets as the U.S. sold record amounts of securities, including $118 billion of notes this week, to help spur a recovery from recession.

Tax-Free Shortage May Repeat Muni Debt Outperforming Treasuries

Dec. 31 (Bloomberg) -- Tax-exempt bonds may return more than Treasuries for a second straight year, paced by the biggest increase in taxable state and local issues as U.S. income tax rates are poised to rise in 2011.

M&A Rebound Years Away as Morgan Stanley Sees ‘Gentle Recovery’

Dec. 30 (Bloomberg) -- Takeover advisers who cheered a surprise fourth-quarter surge in mergers and acquisitions may still have years to wait for a return to 2007’s record dealmaking.

Goldman Sachs Takes Biggest Share of $923 Million U.S. IPO Fees

Dec. 29 (Bloomberg) -- Goldman Sachs Group Inc. won the biggest share of the $923 million in fees from U.S. initial public offerings this year, while Citigroup Inc. fell out of the top five after its revenue plummeted more than 50 percent.

Decade’s Worst Funds Never Recovered From Technology-Stock Bust

Dec. 30 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. stock mutual funds with the biggest losses in the past 10 years, a list topped by Fidelity Growth Strategies and Vanguard U.S. Growth, were crushed by the market sell-off at the start of the decade and never recovered.

Yuan Forwards Rose 5% in 2009 as Recovery Spurred Bets on Gains

Dec. 31 (Bloomberg) -- China’s 12-month yuan forwards gained 5 percent this year as the economy’s recovery from the slowest growth this decade fanned speculation policy makers will allow the currency to resume appreciation. Local bonds fell.

Rupiah Is Asia’s Top Performer as Yields, Growth Attract Funds

Dec. 31 (Bloomberg) -- Indonesia’s rupiah posted its biggest annual advance in seven years as signs the global economy is recovering from the recession encouraged overseas investors to return to emerging-market assets.

Russia Unbeatable to Stock Funds as Kudrin Says Prices Too High

Dec. 30 (Bloomberg) -- Russia is the top investment pick for the biggest emerging-market stock funds in 2010, even after the RTS Index’s world-beating 129 percent rally prompted Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin to say shares are too expensive.

Raphael’s $47.5 Million Muse Beats Matisse to Top 2009 Prices

Dec. 29 (Bloomberg) -- While the art market shrank in 2009, many individual artworks achieved strong results at auction.

Next Decade Will Be Good One for Stock Investors: Matthew Lynn

Dec. 29 (Bloomberg) -- Even the most practiced soothsayer will struggle to make any detailed predictions for the next 10 years. It’s hard enough to know what will happen in the markets in January 2010, never mind December 2019.

Eight Things for Markets to Watch Out for in 2010: Matthew Lynn

Dec. 22 (Bloomberg) -- No one can complain that the last two years have been light on drama. We had the worst financial crash in living memory, and some of the biggest banks in the world effectively came under state control.

My Casualty List Shows Stocks Ready to Rebound: John Dorfman

Dec. 28 (Bloomberg) -- From 1999 through early 2007, I compiled a quarterly Casualty List of banged-up stocks that I believed had good rebound potential.

Obama’s Foreign-Policy Team Bests Economy Stars: Albert Hunt

Dec. 28 (Bloomberg) -- A year ago, the expectation was that President-elect Barack Obama’s economic team would be a smooth- functioning machine, and the outlook was for turbulence in the national-security arena.

‘New Normal’ Tops 2009 Overused Phrases List: Caroline Baum

Dec. 23 (Bloomberg) -- For journalists, pundits and comedians, the end of the year provides an opportunity to look back, fantasize forward and let the creative juices flow.

Year in Review: Stocks, Commodities Rally - Bloomberg.com

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"Every morning I get up and look through the Forbes list of the richest people in America. If I'm not there, I go to work." - Stocks on Wall Street