Trump Rings the Bell at the NYSE
President-elect Donald Trump rang the opening bell Thursday at the New York Stock Exchange—moments after being named TIME Magazine’s Man of the Year.
“This is an honor, a tremendous honor,” Trump said. “Usually, they don’t coordinate the man of the year, or person of the year, with the ringing of the bell. Brilliantly, you picked them both at the same time.”
During his first term, Trump often talked about stock market gains as if they were a testament to his leadership and the policies of his administration. While there are obvious dangers around a president treating the stock market as a measure of his success, Trump’s regard for the stock market is shared by his fellow Americans.
President-elect Donald Trump speaks during a Time magazine Person of the Year event at the New York Stock Exchange, Thursday, Dec. 12, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
The latest survey by YouGov for the Economist asked the question: “How important is the issue of what happens in the stock market to you?” Sixty-two percent of Americans said the stock market is somewhat important (40 percent) or very important (22 percent). So, while it is common to point out that the stock market is not the same as the economy, most Americans think what happens in the stock market is important not just in a general sense but personally.
Black Americans are slightly more likely to think the stock market is important than white Americans. According to the survey, 25 percent of black Americans say it is very important, and 40 percent say it is somewhat important, for a total of 65 percent. Among white Americans, 22 percent say it is very important, and 40 percent say it is somewhat important.
Hispanics are only slightly less likely to say the stock market is important, with 22 percent saying it is very important and 38 percent saying it is somewhat important.
What these numbers make clear is that a super-majority of Americans, across racial and ethnic groups, think the stock market is important. They share Trump’s interest in how the market is doing. Only 15 percent of Americans say what happens in the stock market is unimportant.
The Stock Market Is a Populist Issue
Perhaps surprisingly, the belief that what happens in the stock market is important is not confined to the wealthy or even the middle class. Forty-nine percent of Americans with incomes under $50,000 say the stock market is very or somewhat important to them. That’s higher than the percentage of Americans with that level of income who own stocks or mutual funds. Only 21 percent of this group says what happens to the stock market is unimportant to them.
For Americans earning between $50,000 and $100,000, 65 percent rate the stock market as very or somewhat important. Just 11 percent say it is unimportant. Among those earning more than $100,000, 34 percent say it is very important, and 47 percent say it is somewhat important. Five percent rate the stock market as personally unimportant.
One takeaway here is that Trump’s attention to the stock market is not a break with his populist politics. It’s a reflection of his populism. While establishment politicians tend to follow the unwritten rule of not explicitly touting a rising market, the populist Trump is willing to embrace the market as a measure of success because he’s on the same page of a super-majority of Americans.
Stocks Did Very Well When Trump Was President and Are Doing Very Well Again
Of course, it is easier to use the stock market as a measure of your presidency when it is doing very well. During Trump’s first term, the U.S. stock market experienced notable growth. The S&P 500 index rose approximately 67 percent, reflecting investor confidence in the administration’s economic policies, including tax cuts and deregulation efforts. That was on top of the 15 percent gain in the first two months following the 2016 election.
President-elect Donald Trump rings the opening bell on the trading floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on December 12, 2024, in New York City. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
That’s even better than the stock market’s performance under President Joe Biden. Since Biden took office on January 20, 2021, the S&P 500 index increased by approximately 52.8 percent. At this point in Trump’s presidency, the market was up 61 percent.
Since election day, the S&P 500 is up around 5.5 percent, and the Russell 2000 index of small-caps is up more than 10 percent. That means it is likely that Trump is going to keep on touting stock market gains, and Americans are going to keep on feeling good about the effect of the election on the stock market.
