BNY Wealth Sees US Stock Market Roaring Ahead Despite Tariff Concerns
Despite mounting worries about Donald Trump’s tariff policy, BNY Wealth, a firm managing over $2.1 trillion in assets, remains bullish on the US stock market and economic growth heading into 2025.
Sinead Colton Grant, the chief investment officer at BNY Wealth, recently reiterated her positive outlook, stating, “One of the key themes in our outlook is, equities have room to run, and specifically with that, we mean US equities.”
Why BNY Remains Optimistic
BNY Wealth believes the stock market will continue to thrive due to a low double-digit increase in corporate profits, spurred by tax cuts and a solid economic backdrop with steady growth and lower inflation.
Colton Grant emphasizes that the consensus view on tariffs is too simplistic. While tariffs can indeed have negative impacts, their effect isn’t always straightforward.
“What seems to be happening across the industry is a straight read across, from ‘tariffs equals higher prices equals inflation,'” Colton Grant said. “It’s much more complicated than that.”
She believes Trump will primarily target China with tariffs due to unfair trade practices, while other tariffs might be less stringent or even absent.
Further bolstering their optimism, BNY Wealth sees inflation remaining manageable, settling at a slightly higher level than seen in the 2010s. This environment is conducive to healthy equity market performance.