A bull market is defined by sustained upward price momentum, typically accompanied by improving economic fundamentals, rising corporate earnings, and broadly positive investor sentiment. The formal definition requires a 20% gain from recent trough levels, but practically bull markets are recognized by the character of price action — higher highs, higher lows, and a general willingness of investors to buy dips rather than sell rallies. Bull markets can last for years (the 2009–2020 US bull market ran for nearly eleven years) but are punctuated by corrections (declines of 10–20%) that test investor conviction without breaking the larger uptrend. Identifying the sector leadership within a bull market — which groups are consistently outperforming — is often more valuable than simply knowing the broad market is rising. Bull markets eventually end when valuations become stretched, monetary policy tightens significantly, or economic conditions deteriorate.
