Should You Buy a S&P 500 Index Fund Before April 2?

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Bram Berkowitz, The Motley Fool

Sat, Mar 22, 2025, 7:20 AM 4 min read

The broader benchmark S&P 500 scale has gotten disconnected to a less-than-ideal commencement successful 2025, down astir 4% this year. It besides concisely flirted with correction territory from highs seen successful mid to precocious February. Concerns astir the economy, growth, and President Donald Trump's commercialized warfare look to beryllium weighing connected the market, though it had besides gotten costly aft a two-plus-year bull run.

The way guardant remains murky, with Trump seemingly changing his caput connected tariffs by the time and investors reexamining however acold the medication volition spell to execute its goals. A cardinal deadline successful the saga is accelerated approaching. Should investors bargain the marketplace earlier April 2?

On the run trail, Trump talked up his program to instrumentality tariffs and proceed enactment from his archetypal word successful bid to level the playing tract and marque American businesses much competitive. Of course, determination is simply a wide quality connected the interaction of tariffs and what they execute implicit time. Many economists judge they are effectively a taxation connected U.S. consumers and could thrust up inflation.

Upon taking office, Trump began to instrumentality tariffs, which seemingly person deed the marketplace beauteous hard. Many investors assumed the medication would usage tariffs mostly arsenic a bargaining spot and not really instrumentality them to the magnitude discussed successful the campaign. However, Trump has implemented 25% tariffs connected each alloy and aluminum imports. He's besides levied 25% tariffs connected Canadian and Mexican imports and 20% tariffs connected China. However, Trump past delayed tariffs connected galore Canadian and Mexican imports until April 2.

Trump besides plans to levy sweeping reciprocal tariffs, charging countries the aforesaid level of tariffs they enforce connected U.S. goods. These are besides slated to spell into effect connected April 2. On March 17, Trump inactive seemed acceptable to instrumentality said tariffs, saying, "April 2 is simply a liberating time for our country." Trump besides told reporters helium has nary plans to easiness up connected tariffs despite concerns astir the market.

People sitting astir a array looking astatine papers.

Investors person been trying to fig retired whether to instrumentality Trump astatine his connection since helium was sworn into office. The famed woody shaper tin beryllium unpredictable, aft all, and doesn't look to caput keeping radical successful the dark. While investors and strategists reason implicit however overmuch the marketplace is responding to tariffs, determination surely seems to beryllium a batch of question connected days erstwhile Trump announces tariff-related news.

If the president goes up with each of his tariff plans, it volition beryllium different awesome to investors that Trump is superior astir what helium says and is apt consenting to unrecorded with immoderate marketplace symptom to execute his administration's broader goals. If Trump forges immoderate benignant of commercialized deals with Mexico and Canada, past possibly helium truly does program to usage tariffs arsenic much of a negotiating tactic. It's besides wholly imaginable the medication punts again and decides to hold tariffs for different fewer weeks oregon a month.