By John Towfighi, Eleanor Stubbs, Soph Warnes, Marco Chacón and Sarah-Grace Mankarious, CNN
April 30, 2025
President Donald Trump’s first 100 days have coincided with the stock market’s third-worst start to any presidency in US history, only behind Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford.
The US stock market soared after Trump’s reelection in November on hopes his administration would unleash a pro-business boom. The S&P 500 posted back-to-back gains of more than 20% the past two years, and many Wall Street analysts expected the business-friendly president would unlock the perfect environment to extend the historic bull run.
Yet 100 days into Trump’s presidency, Wall Street has been shaken by historic levels of uncertainty and volatility.
The S&P 500 slumped as Trump rolled out his plan for trade policy, hitting its lowest level of the year on April 8. While the market has regained some ground since, the S&P 500 is still below where it was before Trump unveiled his “reciprocal” tariffs.
Scroll on to see how the market has reacted during Trump’s first 100 days in office.
S&P 500 0.00%
From last market close before Inauguration day
The S&P 500 has shed $3.66 trillion in market value since Trump was inaugurated, according to Howard Silverblatt, senior index analyst at S&P Dow Jones Indices.
The US stock market is one of the best-known barometers of the mood in the economy. Market downturns can spook investors and decrease the value of retirement plans for millions of Americans.
As the benchmark US stock index, the S&P 500 tracks the 500 biggest public companies in the United States by market value. Even if you don’t own individual stocks, retirement plans like 401(k)s are invested funds that track the S&P 500, meaning you might be invested in these top companies through your employer. The value of your retirement fund can rise and fall with market movements. About 62% of US adults held stocks in 2024, whether through an individual stock, a mutual fund or a retirement savings account, according to an annual Gallup survey.
The S&P 500 was up 5% across the first 100 days of Trump’s first term, far outpacing its loss of 7.27% across the first 100 days of his second term. Compared to other post-World War II presidents’ first 100 days, Trump’s second term is among the worst in terms of market performance.
Meanwhile, the US dollar index, which measures the dollar’s strength against six foreign currencies, has tumbled more than 8% this year.
Gold has soared more than 26% this year, smashing through record highs and briefly surpassing $3,500 a troy ounce. The yellow metal is considered a haven amid economic and geopolitical uncertainty.
The Trump administration’s approach to trade policy this year has roiled markets. Adam Turnquist, chief technical strategist at LPL Financial, said “rollercoaster” would best describe the market’s performance in past weeks. The volatility can be stomach-churning. To be sure, while downturns can be unnerving, history has shown that the market climbs higher in the long run.
