Boomers face a 'devastating' blow to their life savings as more tariff pain looms, finance guru warns

The S&P 500 fell 5% successful the archetypal 3 months of 2025, marking its worst 4th since 2022, portion the Nasdaq Composite slumped 10% arsenic stocks similar Tesla plunged 36%.

Those declines person taken a wound retired of galore people's investments successful the banal market, and could disrupt their status plans if they continue.

"For the tiny investor, the diminution successful worth volition beryllium devastating, peculiarly for retired babe boomers" who gully their incomes from their status accounts, Peter Ricchiuti, a elder prof of concern astatine Tulane University's Freeman School of Business, told Business Insider.

The sell-off is partially successful absorption to Trump's topsy-turvy tariffs successful caller weeks, which person made it "impossible" for concern owners to marque decisions, Ricchiuti said.

The erstwhile concern manager, who erstwhile oversaw Louisiana's $3 cardinal portfolio arsenic the adjunct authorities treasurer, said that moving a institution has go a "game of Whack-A-Mole" due to the fact that everyone is trying to conjecture which manufacture volition beryllium deed next.

Trump unveiled tariffs of astatine slightest 10% connected imports from each overseas countries connected Wednesday, with higher rates for countries with a ample commercialized shortage with the US. Goods from China, the number-two exporter to the US aft Mexico, volition beryllium taxable to a 54% tariff from April 9 if thing changes.

The quality sent S&P futures down much than 3% successful premarket trading connected Thursday, arsenic cardinal constituents Tesla and Nvidia tumbled 8% and 6% respectively.

Tariffs propulsion up costs for companies and prices for consumers, portion uncertainty discourages hiring, expansion, and spending. Those forces dilatory firm net growth, eroding valuations and sending stocks lower, Ricchiuti said.

Strategists astatine Goldman Sachs chopped their S&P 500 forecast past week, citing the incoming tariffs arsenic their main rationale. They predicted the scale would diminution a further 5% this 4th and summation 6% implicit the adjacent 12 months, down from 0% and 16%, respectively.

One pressing interest is that Trump ratcheting up import taxes volition origin countries astir the satellite to retaliate by imposing reciprocal tariffs connected imports from the US. Ricchiuti said that's 1 crushed wherefore tariffs ne'er win successful leveling presumption of commercialized and alternatively enactment arsenic "prosperity killers."