Stocks to record the worst quarter of three years as investors wait for “liberation day”

• President Donald Trump changed his song Again about tariffs as investors are nervously waiting for a new batch of new import taxes to be announced on Wednesday. There is a particularly tough march on the stock market, and a quiet period of revenues has made bad news from Washington even bigger than usual.

Stocks are set to record the worst quarter in nearly three years as the market is waiting for President Donald Trump’s next big Customs Tax Announcement on wednesday. The S&P 500 fell sharply after the opening bell, falling below the 5,500 mark for the first time since September, bounced back with its losses. The index is down by more than 5% per year, the worst 3 months This is the first time since the second quarter of 2022, it fell 17%.

It’s on Wall Street Especially sour About technology while investors look for safer assets Tariff confusion. Nasdaq Composite fell more than 1% as of noon on Monday, and fell more than 11% in the first quarter of 2025. nvidiathrew away nearly a quarter of their value when the stocks soaked on Monday, but Elon Musk was Tesla After the stocks fell, this year it exceeded 30%.

The market was supported last week after Trump downplayed expectations for a tariff announcement on April 2nd.Release date. “However, the songs from the administration have changed again. Wall Street Journal Report Blankets on weekends 20% tariff All imports are available on the table. The White House has also pushed back what is known as previous reports. Mutual Tariffs Trading partners could be narrowing, and the president tells reporters on Sunday that new taxes will target “all countries.”

As says saying, the market is well-known for its dislike of uncertainty, and the unsurprising tariff threat from Trump has been weighing stocks for months. ETF, CEO of Infrastructure Capital Advisors and Jay Hatfield, Hedge-Fund manager, said things are getting worse as there is a lack of good news as the announcement looms on Wednesday.

The Heart of Trump Economic Agendahe said, the idea is that it’s a tariff. I’ll pay In the case of tax cuts elsewhere. Investors are forced to fight that way Higher taxes Regarding imports, there was little update from Washington about slowing growth, potentially higher prices, and reducing tax burdens for individuals and businesses.

“The bad parts are pretty certain,” Hatfield said. “But the good part is not certain.”

After winning Trump’s election in November, stocks initially rose to an all-time high thanks to the president’s promise to unleash economic growth.

“It’s not because he was trying to make Canada a 51st province,” Hatfield said.

Seasonality can exacerbate the fear of a recession

These post-election benefits have been erased after both S&P and Nasdaq slipped in Modification Area In March. Tariff worries are incited by the flames of fear of the recession. Goldman Sachs Say it now There is a 35% chance of a GDP contract for the second quarter in a row, as large import taxes can strain consumer spending and curb continued uncertainty. Business Investment.

Cut of Federal WorkforceMeanwhile, it also affects the monthly employment report on Friday, but Hatfield wouldn’t be surprised if it got soft. But it could be bullish for the stock market in the long term, he said, if it urges the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates.

He pointed out again Bonds have been collected Monday when investors pile up on safe assets. Treasury yields, mortgage rate benchmarks, and other borrowing costs across the economy are currently down about 60 basis points from early January, at 4.23%.

Finally, Hatfield also said that March is a weak month for the regular stock market, as there is no major earnings announcement to fight the bad news.

“It’s like waking up in the middle of the night,” he said. “You don’t usually feel euphoric. You wake up with your own fear.”

Many investors hope that their tariff nightmare will soon end.

This story was originally introduced Fortune.com