S&P 500 Bull Market Now 8th Longest Since WWII: Ryan Detrick Hints It Might Only Be 'Halfway Over'

The ongoing S&P 500 bull market has surpassed a major 1960s milestone, signaling that equities may still have plenty of room to run.

Historic Milestone Reached

The current S&P 500 bull market, which began at the bear market bottom in October 2022, has officially become the eighth-longest rally since World War II.

According to new data from Carson Investment Research and FactSet, the run hit the 3.630-year mark, officially overtaking the historic 3.627-year bull market of 1962–1966. Over this span, the index has surged by 111.9%.

Why It Might Only Be ‘Halfway Over’

While some market commentators worry that a 43-month-old rally is getting extended, Carson Group’s Chief Market Strategist Ryan Detrick suggests history points to further gains.

“What matters here is how long those other bull markets that made it this far lasted,” Detrick noted in a recent post on X. He emphasized that the other seven longest historical rallies lasted an average of more than seven total years.

Looking ahead at the historical trajectory, Detrick teased market skeptics by adding, “Imagine if this bull was only ‘halfway over’? Boy, that'll upset a lot of bears.”

The Path Forward

This milestone follows a notoriously “choppy” third year for the index, which included a near-bear market correction. However, past data shows that once a bull market survives its third-year turbulence, the momentum behaves like a cruise ship that is incredibly difficult to stop.

If historical averages hold, this rally could comfortably extend past the 7-year mark, fueled by strong corporate fundamentals and resilient macroeconomic indicators.

How Have Markets Performed In 2026?

The S&P 500 index has advanced 10.52% year-to-date. Similarly, the Nasdaq Composite index was up 16.08%, and the Dow Jones gained 5.48% YTD.

The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY) and Invesco QQQ Trust ETF (NASDAQ:QQQ), which track the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100, respectively, closed higher on Friday. The SPY ended up 0.25% at $756.48, while the QQQ was higher by 0.37% to $738.31.

Meanwhile, Dow tracker, State Street SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust (NYSE:DIA), closed 0.74% higher on Friday.

Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.

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