2025

Two months after the stock market’s climatic Tariff Panic low, there remains still plenty for investors to fret over.

Markets were reminded not to dismiss three factors that have already contributed to volatility and uncertainty in recent months- global tariff policies, fiscal deficits and debt, and the traditional drivers of the US dollar. Yet S&P closed out its best May since 2023.

A previous six week rebound rally had cleared many technical hurdles, burned lots of investor pessimism as fuel, exploited a ‘free pass’ on economic data and priced in more trade progress. And now?

S&P500 back in black for the year (as of 5/13/25)…Is it a sustainable trend or just a trading bounce?

For the record, weight of the evidence now suggests the Fed should focus more on growth risks, less on surface inflation effects from tariffs, opening a path to ease…Is there more room for markets to run or are the gains fully baked in?

Market back to the April 2nd low, traders keying on the ‘upside risk’ of steady tariff backtracking that could, maybe, prevent the ugly survey trends from spilling into hard macro data. Is the rally back, intact & lasting?

A stressed market can and will trade fast & loose to exploit technical/sentiment extremes and in search of buyers/sellers with conviction. What the action mostly reveals is the market’s strong and clear preference for the administration to unilaterally disarm to end the trade war it started.

When perceived uncertainty is high, so is the capacity for resolution & relief. The collective confusion over Trump’s tariff turmoil is building suspense around the economy’s resilience. Is the pervasive gloom an overreaction to ambiguous economic signals & erratic policy OR a sober recognition that real world conditions are souring fast?

Markets that spent two years anticipating a recession that never came took 2 days to price in surging odds of a recession that might come by invitation. A tariff off-ramp or ditch ahead? How do we navigate the markets ‘new normal’?

A growth scare, messy exit from mega-cap tech & trade-policy aggression causing a market leadership crisis. Has the confidence crash & 10+% correction priced enough in?

One of the faster 10% thumping’s in memory put the market in the post-concussion protocol: every vital sign scrutinized, setbacks assumed, monitoring for lasting damages… Do bulls or bears face the burden of proof now?

As the US economy slows into a policy fog, investors try to focus on the centerline reflectors and listen for the rumble strips that may signal a breach of the market’s benign trend. Is a ‘New Golden Age upon us’?

The market enters March facing economic jitters and intense policy noise that’s denting confidence. Does the ‘Buy when uncertainty is high’ rule still apply? What to make of the ‘economic growth scare’ talk & can stocks find their footing?

SP500 has touched 6100 7x in the past few weeks. Two months of so far benign churn, working off frothy 2024 sentiment, and absorbing waves of policy noise. Encouraging resilience or a fragile equilibrium?

The market is calm but unable to relax.

A tireless bid from retail investors and the market’s knack for rotations have supported stocks through a rethink of the AI trade, a jumpy bond market and erratic policy signals with on-off-on tariff plans.

Investors find themselves cautiously optimistic as rate rise cools and the second Trump era gets in motion.