(Reuters) – Wall Street pared gains sharply on Friday after Donald Trump made his inaugural speech as the 45th president of the United States.
“From this day forward, it is going to be only America first,” Trump said after being sworn in, adding that the U.S. policy will be to buy American and hire American.
Trump’s campaign promises of tax and regulatory reforms and higher infrastructure spending had driven Wall Street to new highs in a post-election rally.
However, the Trump trade had been unraveling in recent weeks as investors waited for more clarity on his plans to boost the economy.
“Having listened to Trump’s speech, there is a concern about what his trade policies will be,” said Jamie Cox, managing partner of Harris Financial Group in Colonial Heights, Richmond, Virginia.
“That’s probably the No. 1 area where Trump will have to tone down his rhetoric because we do have to work with other nations,” said Cox, who was at the inauguration.
The S& P 500 has fallen by a median 2.7 percent in the month after each new president has taken the keys to the White House since Herbert Hoover did so in January 1929, according to a Reuters analysis.
The dollar index weakened as Trump spoke, while gold, which was trading lower ahead of the inauguration, moved into positive territory.
At 11:33 a.m., the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 31.96 points, or 0.16 percent, at 19,764.36.
The S&P 500 was up 1.85 points, or 0.08 percent, at 2,265.54 and the Nasdaq Composite was up 3.50 points, or 0.06 percent, at 5,543.59.
Local experts to give their take
On Thursday, Jan. 26, local experts will weigh in on how a Trump presidency could shape the economy for southeastern Wisconsin businesses at the Northern Trust Economic Trends breakfast presented by BizTimes Media. The event will take place at the Italian Conference Center, 631 E. Chicago St. in Milwaukee, from 7 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.
The panelists are: Michael Knetter, economist and president and CEO of the University of Wisconsin Foundation; Cynthia LaConte, CEO and president of The Dohmen Co.; W. Kent Lorenz, chairman and CEO of Acieta LLC; and Debbie Seeger, senior vice president and co-founder of Patina Solutions.
For more information or to register, visit www.biztimes.com/trends.
