Remember when a Trump tweet could tank the market? Those days are gone, my friend. According to Morgan Stanley, investors have officially become immune to the former president’s social media shenanigans, and honestly, it’s kind of hilarious.
For months, Trump has been posting about everything from tariffs to the Federal Reserve to the Iran war. But here’s the thing: the market has collectively yawned. Morgan Stanley’s equity strategist Ariana Salvatore put it bluntly: “For equities, headline risks from social media posts are becoming less important outside of possible intraday trading.” Translation? Your portfolio isn’t going to crater because Trump had a hot take at 6 AM.
Sure, Trump’s managed to pump individual stocks. He’s praised Dell, Micron, and Palantir on social media, and those stocks have gotten a bump. But the broader market? It’s moved on. Investors have basically decided that Trump’s online decrees are about as predictable as a reality TV show—entertaining, sure, but not exactly market-moving.
The real culprit? Familiarity breeds contempt. Ever since the “Liberation Day” sell-off in April 2025, investors have gotten used to Trump’s posting cadence and style. They’ve built up an immunity. It’s like when your favorite song gets overplayed on the radio—eventually, you just tune it out.
Bond markets are even more dismissive. They only budge if there’s an actual policy shift implied. So if Trump posts about tariffs but doesn’t actually change policy? Crickets.
Here’s where it gets interesting: Morgan Stanley is basically telling investors to stop obsessing over Trump’s Twitter feed and focus on what actually matters—real policy changes. As Salvatore noted, “Tariff/geopolitical uncertainty is likely to persist throughout the remainder of President Trump’s term, but investors may find it more productive to focus on plausible policy changes and durable policy themes.”
Translation: Stop reading the tweets. Read the policy.
Since Trump returned to the White House, economic uncertainty has been sky-high, driven by trade volatility and geopolitical tensions (hello, Iran war). Some finance pros have even suggested that investors might just stop taking Trump seriously altogether because of his unpredictability. But here’s the kicker: uncertainty isn’t going anywhere, regardless of midterm outcomes. Congress is actually more predictable than Trump’s posts—and that’s saying something.
So what should investors actually watch? Morgan Stanley laid out a few key areas: Republican agenda items that can move forward regardless of election outcomes, policy areas with growing bipartisan support (China policy, AI infrastructure), and potential compromise areas where Democrats might extract concessions.
The bottom line? The market has evolved. It’s no longer a slave to Trump’s social media impulses. Instead of refreshing Truth Social every five minutes, investors should be paying attention to actual legislative developments and policy outcomes. It’s less exciting, sure, but it’s also way more reliable for your portfolio.
So go ahead—mute those Trump notifications. Your stocks will thank you.
