Donald Trump told a room full of executives on Tuesday that he senses a “renewed spirit” coursing through the US corporate world, as businesses unleash hundreds of billions of dollars of investment. “The tariffs,” the president added in a meeting of the Business Roundtable, “are having a tremendously positive impact.”
As he spoke, stock markets were delivering a very different verdict. The S&P 500 index closed down 0.8 per cent that day and continued falling in the following days before rebounding on Friday. The index has lost 4 per cent since the start of 2025.
Confidence has been shaken by the twists in the White House’s belligerent and unpredictable trade policy, alongside fears that the shake-up of federal government machinery will sap growth.