President Donald Trump’s trade war with the world has seen trillions of dollars in wealth tied to the global markets evaporate within days. While all investors are feeling the pressure, experts say the wealthiest Americans are seeing perhaps the biggest impact.
On Friday, the S&P 500 lost 6%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average 5.5% and the Nasdaq composite index plunged 5.8%. The decline marked the worst week for the S&P 500 since March 2020 at the onset of the pandemic.
“A lot of my high-net-worth clients are definitely uneasy,” said Karla Dennis, a California-based tax agent and business consultant. “They’re watching the market take a big hit and wondering, ‘Should I be doing something? Should I pull out? What’s next?’”
Dennis shared an example of one high-net-worth client who is heavily invested in tech and overseas markets and has seen over $2 million in paper losses just this week.
“That doesn’t mean they lost the money. It’s not gone until they sell, but it’s a big emotional hit. When you open your account and see red numbers, it’s hard to stay calm,” she said.
So far, there have been few, if any, winners from the trade war.
Stocks for all but 12 of the 500 companies that make up the S&P 500 index fell Friday. The price of crude oil tumbled to its lowest level since 2021. Other basic building blocks for economic growth, such as copper, also saw prices slide on worries the trade war will weaken the global economy.
Trump insists his gamble will eventually pay off for average Americans and investors.
Staying at Mar-a-Lago, his private club in Florida, Trump headed to Trump International Golf Club West Palm Beach after writing on social media, “THIS IS A GREAT TIME TO GET RICH” and encouraging investors to buy the dip.
The central question is: Will the trade war cause a global recession? If so, stock prices will likely fall even further than they have already, wiping out even more wealth.
President Donald Trump holds a signed executive order during an event to announce new tariffs in the Rose Garden of the White House, Wednesday, April 2, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
“Back in the 19th century and early 20th century, the super-rich had much of their wealth tied to actual things like railroads and factories,” notes KTLA consumer reporter David Lazarus. “Today, the super-rich have their money almost exclusively in stocks, so when the stock market does well, they get much richer. When the stock market has a bad day, like today, they get poorer.”
With staggering market losses due to the trade war, Lazarus believes the one-percenters are likely reaching out to the White House.
“The rich won’t miss any meals, so there’s that,” he says. “But it seems a fair bet that more than a few will be contacting the White House to say this is unacceptable.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
