Americans saw their net worth soar to records last year thanks to the stock market

Americans saw household wealth catapult to historic highs last year thanks to a stellar bull run for stocks. 

The total yearly net worth of US households soared 8% to a record high of $156.2 trillion in 2023, according to data released by the Federal Reserve on Thursday. 

"The change in household net worth was primarily driven by an increase in the value of directly and indirectly held corporate equity, which rose by $4.7 trillion in the fourth quarter. Meanwhile, the value of real estate on the household balance sheet fell by $0.4 trillion," the Fed said in a statement. 

The full value of all stocks owned by Americans rose to $47.5 trillion, up from $39.7 trillion at the end of 2022. 

The fourth quarter alone saw Americans' wealth jump $4.8 trillion, climbing on the back of a year-end rally that took off as investors began to place bets the Fed would soon ease monetary policy. That erases a brief decline in net worth seen in the third quarter, when net worth dipped slightly by $1.4 trillion. 

The central bank also said that the fourth quarter saw a 2.4% bump in household debt, driven by a 3.3% surge in consumer credit and a 2.1% uptick in mortgage debt.  

The stock market's big rally has continued into 2024, with the S&P 500 up over 8% year-to-date. The gains have been driven by huge enthusiasm around artificial intelligence since Nvidia's strong fourth-quarter earnings report, as well as continued hope that the Fed will soon lower interest rates. 

US stocks hit another record high on Thursday as investors absorbed Fed Chair Jerome Powell's fresh comments, where he reiterated his stance that the central bank is aiming to loosen monetary policy this year.