The Blubber

“We’re one Truth Social post away from a 5% swing either way on any given day,” said Bill Eigen, a portfolio manager at JPMorgan, during a CNBC appearance Friday morning ahead of the April jobs report. “At this point, the data almost feels like an afterthought.”

Markets have been reacting sharply to President Donald Trump’s social media activity. Last month, stocks dropped after Trump wrote that Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s firing “can’t come soon enough,” intensifying his criticism of the Fed’s leadership.

Conversely, markets soared when Trump announced a 90-day reprieve on tariffs to allow time for trade talks — again, via his Truth Social platform. That came after earlier bouts of volatility sparked by similar posts. Bloomberg noted that some investors have adopted what they call a “72-hour rule,” waiting three days to act on Trump’s statements to see if he walks them back.

A JPMorgan analysis in February showed that while Trump was posting fewer market-moving messages than during his first term, around 10% of his content still had a notable impact, and the frequency was beginning to rise again, according to Reuters. The White House did not respond to questions, and JPMorgan declined to elaborate.

Even before retaking office, Trump’s posts were affecting currency markets. In late November, just after his re-election, he used Truth Social to declare tariffs would be imposed on Mexico and Canada. Within a day, both the Canadian dollar and Mexican peso weakened against the U.S. dollar.

Trump’s unpredictable stance on tariffs — alternating between threats and delays — has fueled persistent market turbulence since his election. Still, not everyone sees that as a bad thing. Eigen, who leads JPMorgan Asset Management’s Absolute Return and Opportunistic Fixed Income team, described the market environment in mid-April as “fun” and said he was holding plenty of cash, waiting for opportunities.

“The challenge right now,” Eigen said, “is that the right course is often the most painful one.” While the administration is pushing to finalize trade agreements, he added, “the path is going to be difficult — and I don’t think the market’s finished suffering yet.”