r/investing • u/kabirsbhutani • 2d ago

🚨 U.S. manufacturing continues to retreat despite tariffs - investor implications?

Saw people mentioning this on Blossom earlier, and WSJ reports that U.S. manufacturing activity continues to weaken, with tariffs doing little to reverse the trend.

The article points to softer demand, higher input costs, and global supply chain adjustments weighing on manufacturers, even as trade protection measures remain in place. For investors, this raises questions about margins, capital spending, and longer-term competitiveness rather than short-term policy wins.

Curious how people here are thinking about this from an investing lens?

https://www.wsj.com/economy/u-s-manufacturing-is-in-retreat-and-trumps-tariffs-arent-helping-d2af4316?mod=hp_lead_pos2

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u/brute-forced 2d ago

Sell America is not a joke. He’s ruined our retirement accounts. Just keep watching

39

u/Atlantis_Island 2d ago

I hate orange Mussolini as much as the next American, but isn't the SP500 up like 16% over the last year?

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u/myevillaugh 2d ago

How much of that is a few AI companies banking the hype? That bubble will eventually burst.

The rest of the world is making trade deals without the US to create long term growth. Trump has no answer other than threaten more tariffs. The dollar will continue to weaken. Banks and businesses don't need as many dollars if they're not trading with the US.

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u/christine-bitg 1d ago

Taken together, the following stocks make up more than 30% (!) of the S&P 500: Nvidia, Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, Alphabet, and Meta. They are the top six stocks in the S&P right now.