According to updated GDP reports, the U.S. economy grew at its fastest back-to-back quarterly rate since 2003. Yet few would attribute the U.S. dollar’s surge against competing currencies to the upbeat news.

October is a perfect study in how quickly stocks can fake you out. (SPY) dropped more than 10% from high to low and erased all of its gains of the year in the course of a month.

While investors have been expecting a 10% correction for some time, many were caught off guard with the swift downward price action followed by a tremendous rebound.

Homebuilders have tried to stay upbeat about their rate-sensitive industry. 30-year mortgage rates have, in many cases, dropped three-quarters of a percentage point in 2014.

In spite of a stock market sell-off that nearly set the S&P 500 back 10%, some stock ETFs have already recovered. A handful of funds barely trembled during last week’s frightful liquidation.

Clearly, the S&P 500 SPDR Trust (SPY) performed remarkably well in 2014. For improved risk-adjusted rewards, it could easily have been paired with Vanguard Total Bond.