Stocks Are on One of the Wildest Rollercoaster Rides of the Last 25 Years

U.S. stocks continued their wild ride on Wednesday, with the S&P 500 swinging between gains and losses throughout the first half of the session before soaring after Trump announced a 90-day pause on most of the sweeping tariffs announced last week.

The S&P 500 was up 8% in recent trading, about 9% above its session low of 4,948. Wednesday’s surge put the index on track to snap a five-day losing streak. 

Stocks have swung wildly every day this week amid uncertainty about Trump’s tariff plans and their economic fallout. The S&P 500 jumped on Monday as rumors about a 90-day pause sparked a rally that was quickly quashed by the White House’s dismissal of the rumor as “fake news.” The index ranged widely again on Tuesday, as stocks popped in early trading before sliding later in the session as hopes for last-minute deals faded. 

The tariffs President Trump announced last week have lifted anxiety among investors, business leaders, and consumers to its highest level in years. The Cboe Volatility Index (VIX) ended yesterday’s session at 52.33, its highest close since March 2020. Since the turn of the century, the only other instances of the VIX closing above 50 have come at the height of the Covid-19 sell-off and during the 2008 Global Financial Crisis. On Wednesday, the VIX plummeted more than 30% as investors breathed a sigh of relief at Trump’s tariff pause. 

Still, tariffs have created plenty of uncertainty for consumers and businesses. Mentions of “chaos” on earnings calls and corporate conferences have soared, and analysts are expecting a sharp drop-off in the number of companies issuing earnings guidance when reporting first-quarter results in the coming weeks.