Okay, so I’ve been telling people for ages now that playing the market game—you know, hopping from stocks to cash and back again—just doesn’t work. Like, sure, you might get lucky once in a while. But consistently? Nah, not happening. It’s like betting on a cat race; you’ll end up sitting out while the market zooms off without you.
Take these past few months—total chaos, right? Every time Trump threw out a tariff threat or actually imposed one, the market freaked out. And when he backed off? Yeah, stocks went all celebratory. And it’s kinda wild if you look at the timeline since his inauguration. The first day of February, we heard tariffs were coming for Mexico, Canada, China—the whole shebang was supposed to kick off on the 4th. Yet by February 3rd, plot twist! Tariffs on Mexico and Canada got a hold-up; China’s got slapped with 10%.
And it just kept going. February 13th, we’re hearing about “reciprocal tariffs” thrown around like confetti—to start in April apparently. Then there was that moment on February 26, where Trump threw shade at the European Union, saying it was formed to mess with the U.S. and threatened 25% tariffs. Like, whoa, that escalated quickly.
Flash to March. On the 4th, bam! Tariffs hit imports from Canada, Mexico, and, oh yes, additional ones for China. But wait—March 6th came along, and some stuff from Mexico and Canada were let off the hook. China didn’t get so lucky.
Oh, and April 2—it was dubbed “Liberation Day” with more 10% tariffs worldwide, especially hammering the “worst offenders.” It gets crazier; April 11th rolls in, excluding consumer electronics mostly but still keeping a 20% tariff on Chinese gadgets. April 23 saw American states rising up, legally, against Trump’s tariffs. They said he didn’t have the right to dodge Congress like that.
Late April, May, it was a rollercoaster of executive orders and legal pauses, with Trump tweaking tariffs like a playlist. One moment, trying to calm the auto industry, the next, a trade court hits pause on his broad tariffs, chaos everywhere.
Now, looking back, who could’ve possibly called all of that in advance? Spoiler alert: absolutely no one. Timing that circus, market-wise, was just a fool’s errand. But guess what? Oxford Club peeps didn’t just sit there twiddling thumbs. They saw the writing on the wall with those tariffs, knowing most wouldn’t stick around forever. Yeah, sounds like crystal ball stuff, but it really was about paying attention to what was reasonable. Even as things looked like a market meltdown, great buying chances popped up, plain as day.
In the midst of all this, Oxford Club Members got the scoop from one of my ramblings, about how tariffs were just a mistake waiting to be corrected. And heck, even if Trump claimed rolling back tariffs as this big win, I’d be okay because it meant the market freak-out was just that—an overreaction ripe for opportunity.
Trumps kinda sees the stock market as his performance report card. (Seriously, never underestimate a guy who turns a mug shot into a campaign ad!) So while some were bailing, scared out of their socks, savvy investors snatched up stocks for cheap. Fast forward, many of those stocks are flying high now—one jumped more than 100% in less than two months, no joke.
Post-“Liberation Day,” investors everywhere felt the whiplash. Some panic-sold during the collapse. Others just froze, maybe waiting for things to get worse. But those who listened to us? They grabbed solid companies in the bargain bin.
And look, we’re not time travelers here. We had no clue what was next in Trump’s playbook or how soon the market would bounce back. But we stuck with time-honored investing wisdom: buy top-notch stuff when it’s on sale. Sure, waiting for even lower prices is tempting, but it’s basically market timing—and yeah, no surprise—it doesn’t work. So, remember, when stocks are dirt cheap, what are you waiting for? Grab ’em and don’t get caught moving at snail pace.
