Second, the U.S. stock market recovered remarkably quickly from the tariffs imposed during the first Trump administration. Specifically, while the S&P 500 declined 19.8% over a three-month period between September and December 2018, the index had already recouped its losses and reached a new high by May 2019.

No one can predict with certainty how the stock market will react to economic changes in the short term or long term. However, many experts expected that tariffs would cause the stock market's performance to suffer, and they were proven right in the immediate aftermath of new tariffs taking effect.

Berkshire Hathaway just hit a new all-time high while Wall Street is drowning in fear. The company led by Warren is now outperforming almost every major index in 2025.

As the market raged in 2024, Warren Buffett and his company, Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK.A)(NYSE: BRK.B), did very little. They were net sellers of stocks; Berkshire repurchased less of its own stock than in years prior,

The S&P 500 gained 36,974% between 1965 and 2025. That's not too shabby for a 60-year stretch -- unless you compare it to the success of a prophetic life-long investor like Warren Buffett.