Wealth strategies update

Trump’s policies & the equity risk premium – the good, the bad & the ugly

Trump’s policy making has led to lots of volatility in shares – with record highs in February then plunging 14 to 19% on the back of tariff worries into and after his Liberation Day “reciprocal tariff” announcement, only to recover around three quarters of their falls. In fact, US shares are now down just 4% from their record high and Australian shares are down just 3%. Tariffs have been the main driver of this volatility, but it has come with disruptive pronouncements with respect to the US government, legal system, immigrants, the Fed, US allies, DEI and attacks on the media. Quite clearly this has had a short-term impact on investment markets, but could it also have a longer impact? This note looks as the good, the bad and the ugly of Trump’s key policies from an investment perspective. Read more below.