Trump's Buy Advice Boosts S&P 500 by 14% in a Month

In the past month, investors who followed U.S. President Donald Trump's "buy" advice have enjoyed one of the largest gains in the S&P 500 index. After Trump announced tariffs on "Liberation Day" on April 2, the benchmark stock index plummeted. However, in the month following his statement on April 9 that "now is a good time to buy," the S&P 500 index rose by 14%. Trump reiterated this view on May 8, stating that the economic outlook warranted a significant investment in stocks.

Following Trump's "buy" directive, the S&P 500 index surged. This was the largest gain in the S&P 500 index during Trump's presidency, calculated over a 21-day rolling period between the two speeches, excluding the stock market rebound during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Arun Sai, Senior Multi-Asset Strategist at Pictet Asset Management, noted, "It's clear that the 'Trump put' is back in play. But we won't overinterpret this. Yes, his method of doing this is a bit unusual, but ultimately, it's the market digesting some form of 'floor' expectation from the White House."

A few days after Trump's second suggestion to buy stocks, the U.S. and China announced a temporary reduction in tariffs, leading to a near 4% rise in the Nasdaq Composite Index and a nearly 3% increase in the S&P 500 index.

While it is uncommon for world leaders to post financial advice on social media platforms, Trump's first term was characterized by frequent tweets and threats to impose tariffs and sanctions on major trading partners. His posts became must-read content for global investors.

This time, Trump signaled to the market before a key policy reversal. Concerns about a global trade war caused the S&P 500 index to plummet by 12% over four days ending on April 8. Trump had repeatedly insisted that his policies would not be influenced by market fluctuations. However, on April 9, he announced a 90-day suspension of tariffs on most countries.