The S&P 500 ended in March with the most upright monthly decrease in the uncertainty about the scope of President Trump’s tariffs, which investors can accelerate inflation, slow consumer expenditures and the US economy.
On Monday, after a wavy session in which the index reaches a higher level throughout the day, S&P declined by 5.8 percent in March 500, and since December 2022, the worst moon has started a series of sharp interest rates because the Federal Reserve tries to numb inflation. The decline in March emerges from the worst quarter of the S&P 500 at the beginning of a president’s period since President Barack Obama took over during the financial crisis in 2009.
The comparison fell by 8.7 percent in the middle of the mid -February, a 10 percent decline in “correction ,, strengthened the values of portfolios and pension funds in both Wall Street and Main Street. Already entered into a correction, the technology-heavy Nasdaq composite index ended the month by 8.2 percent.
Since he started to work a little longer than two months ago, Mr. Trump predicted investors and companies with a random launch of what he called “America first” trade policy. Threatened, imposed, and in some cases he paused the beginning of new tariffs on the goods coming to the United States.
Whip on trade policy increased market volatility in the first few months of the year. Mr. Trump’s next tariff tour, which will be announced on Wednesday, can bring additional market fluctuations in the coming days.
“What the market hopes after April 2: Give us what to give us, tell us what to happen, and then we’ll try to understand what’s going to happen, Stek “But it is very difficult to invest until then.”
After the election of Mr. Trump, who was the buoy of Wall Street’s deregulation and tax cuts, stocks were collected. However, the rally after the election lost steam when the tariffs began to enter the center in Mr. Trump’s early economic policy priorities.
More recently, Mr. Trump accepted the tariff description of the potential financial accuracy for consumers and businesses, but hoped that shaky markets would rethink their actions. On Saturday, Mr. Trump said in an interview with the NBC in an interview with the “Press Meet”.
Lauren Goodwin, an economist at New York Life Investments, was at the beginning of the year, as investor optimism about US markets, as investors envisaged more business -friendly policies. However, these hopes were questioned, not only in tariffs, but also blurred the appearance of the labor market, Mr. Trump said that he also pointed to a high level of uncertainty in relation to the migration policies.
“An economic at the risk of overheating from all good things, a change of almost 180 degrees in this quarter,” Goodwin said.
Analysts at Goldman Sachs cut their forecasts for S&P 500 in a note on Sunday, referring to higher tariffs, weaker economic growth and more inflation than we have supposed before. They expect the index to decrease by 5 percent in the next three months. If the US economy goes into stagnation, the decline may be deeper if analysts have roughly a third possibility.
Investor anxiety is reflected in other markets. The price of gold was traded on Monday at $ 3,150 per ounce and reached another record level. Gold is usually sought by investors in times of turmoil. Merchants also pushed investors’ concerns about economic growth, pushing a 10 -year Treasury grade return to below 4.2 percent, parking money on the relatively secure US government bonds.
According to CME Fedwatch, interest rates from the Federal Reserve have higher expectations, and investors are making three deductions this year. The FED chose to pause until Mr. Trump will apply and how to react to consumers and businesses. Most Fed officials are preparing for higher inflation and lower growth this year.
On Monday, stocks in Japan and Taiwan fell by more than 4 percent, while stock prices in South Korea fell by 3 percent. The Nikkei 225 index in Japan fell to a correction with a decrease of 12 percent of its highest level in late December. Technology companies were shot hard: Chip producers Taiwan semiconductor production company, SK Hynix, Samsung and Tokyo Electron declines.
The losses in China were quieter. Hong Kong stocks fell more than 1 percent and Chinese mainlands were about 0.5 percent lower. Despite Mr. Trump’s first tariffs, the mainland stocks received some support from a report showing that China’s export -led industrial sector continued to expand.
The markets in Europe also fell, the Stoxx 600 index fell 1.5 percent. In particular, German automobile manufacturers exposed to US tariffs expanded the latest losses: Europe’s largest automobile manufacturer Volkswagen fell more than 3 percent in Frankfurt.
On Monday, at some point, the S&P fell more than 1 percent, but the day ended slightly.
Trump argued that trade barriers will encourage investment and innovation in the United States, introducing tariffs to make imports more expensive in sectors such as cars. He also used tariffs and threats to try to get geopolitical concessions from countries. If the import prices rise, investors are not even more angry with investors, saying that they do not care to sprinkle their actions in markets or American consumers that will have to pay more for many goods.
At the weekend, Mr. Trump increased the pressure and threatened secondary sanctions over Russia if he did not negotiate for the end of the war in Ukraine. The tactic reflects similar sanctions on Venezuela. He said that any country that bought Venezuelan oil last week could face 25 percent more tariffs in exports to the USA.
Weekend threats in imported cars 25 percent tariff and some parts of the car to be fulfilled this week, the last -minute reprieve’yi blocked. This is in addition to the potential of more retaliation tariffs in other countries as well as previously delayed tariffs in Mexico and Canada.
Adding investors to Angst is the version of the monthly report on the health of the US Labor Market on Friday. It can provide another reading of how the Trump administration’s search for policy is weighed on the economy.
Laurence D. Fink, General Manager of Asset Management Giant Blackrock, said, “I hear this from almost every customer, almost every leader – almost every person: they are more concerned about the economy than any time in the last memory.” Annual Letter to Investors. “I understand why. But we’ve lived in such moments before. And somehow, we understand something in the long run.”
Keith Bradsher And Jason Karai Reporting contributed.
