Stock Market Soars: TSP Performance Surges in Q2 2025

TSP performance fluctuated in the second quarter of 2025 as stocks hit a new high in 55 days after a 15% drop, a first in 75 years.

Stock Market (and TSP Returns) Surge in Second Quarter

The stock market has been on a roller coaster this year which has been reflected in the 2025 TSP performance.

A historic and tumultuous quarter ended with U.S. stocks at record highs, and many investors are betting the ride isn’t over yet. The broad stock market index (S&P 5o0) has now added more than 9% since President Trump announced a tariff policy that created stock market havoc. Inflation is now close to the Federal Reserve’s 2% target, and economic growth still seems strong.

The stock market has been on a tear in the second quarter. On April 8, 2025, the C Fund closed at about $79 per share. The S Fund was $71.68. On June 30th, the day the quarter ended, the C Fund was up to $98.67 (25% increase), and the S Fund was up to $92.05 (28.4% increase).

Those who chose to invest in the I Fund also did well. This Fund jumped to $49.72 from $39.69 (25.3% increase).

The table below highlights these returns.

Fund4/8/20256/30/2025%
C Fund$79.0001$98.674325%
S Fund$71.6795$92.052128.4%
I Fund$39.6891$49.724725.3%
G Fund$18.9821$19.17111%
F Fund$19.8518$20.26032.1%

To put this into perspective, on April 8th, stocks had dropped by more than 15% during the year, and the TSP returns were down significantly in March. The surge in stock prices in June set a record. It normally takes about 361 days for the stock market to hit new highs after a drop such as the one that occurred early in the year.

This year, the return from the drop in stock market prices occurred in 55 days. This was the fastest return to a new high following a 15% drawdown in at least 75 years. The usual average is 361 days instead of the 55 days it took this year.

TSP Returns for All Funds in June 2025

FundJune 202512-MonthYear-to-Date
G Fund0.37%4.42%2.22%
F Fund1.54%6.07%4.02%
C Fund5.08%15.11%6.18%
S Fund5.40%15.61%2.11%
I Fund3.73%16.91%18.69%
L Income1.57%7.80%4.55%
L 20251.45%7.93%4.44%
L 20303.00%11.77%7.17%
L 20353.26%12.46%7.62%
L 20403.51%13.12%8.06%
L 20453.73%13.68%8.44%
L 20503.95%14.23%8.79%
L 20554.61%15.95%9.88%
L 20604.61%15.95%9.88%
L 20654.62%15.95%9.88%
L 20704.61%14.48%9.90%
L 2075N/AN/AN/A

Supreme Court Decision May Help Stocks

For decades, any federal judge could block a president’s policies nationwide. A judge in San Francisco or Massachusetts could halt federal government policies nationwide. This judicial veto power, known as a “nationwide injunction,” was struck down by the Supreme Court last week.

The Court’s ruling in Trump v. CASA focused on universal injunctions regarding President Donald Trump’s executive order on birthright citizenship. The majority opinion, written by Justice Amy Coney Barrett, killed universal injunctions. Universal injunctions were often used for blocking deregulation attempts.

Nationwide injunctions were used to freeze Trump’s first-term deregulation agenda. Without nationwide injunctions to restrain the impact of government regulations on business growth, your Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) portfolio may benefit.

TSP Facts

At the end of May, the average TSP balance for federal employees under FERS was up to $196,688.

There were 4,167,810 accounts for those under FERS and 1,162,470 Roth accounts with an average balance of $33,514.

The total number of TSP accounts is up to 7,238,967; less than half (2,800,754) are Roth. The total assets in the TSP now total $975 billion at the end of May.

Average BalanceTotal AccountsAverage Roth BalanceTotal Roth Accounts
FERS$196,6884,167,810$33,5141,162,470
CSRS$222,299230,889$41,4368,867

TSP Fund Changes

The end of June brought about important changes to two of the TSP funds.

The L 2025 fund was retired on June 27 after the markets closed and was rolled into the L Income fund.

On June 30, the L 2075 Fund was launched. This new fund is among the most aggressive of the L Funds in terms of its investment allocation to the TSP’s core stock funds (C, S, and I) and is intended for individuals who plan to retire in 2073 or later.

About the Author

Ralph Smith has several decades of experience working with federal human resources issues. He has written extensively on a full range of human resources topics in books and newsletters and is a co-founder of two companies and several newsletters on federal human resources. Follow Ralph on Twitter: @RalphSmith47