Weekly "Focus" and Back to Where we Started

The main US stock market index is the S&P 500 and remarkably, it’s pretty much back to where it was prior to President Trump’s tariff announcement on April 2^nd. It hasn’t been a smooth ride as the US market dropped by 12% before starting to recover, helped by the 90-day pause on the “reciprocal” tariffs. As well, the market has benefited from mostly positive corporate earnings in Q1 although companies are generally reluctant to give a lot of guidance about the balance of the year. Perhaps the biggest corporate news comes from Berkshire Hathaway as Warren Buffett announced at last weekend’s annual meeting that he was stepping down as the CEO of the company after 60 years at the helm to be replaced by Canadian Greg Abel. If you want to see the most basic website ever, check out www.berkshirehathaway.com where the annual report is always a great read. company is sitting on more than US$300 billion of cash, waiting patiently for opportunities. So far in 2025, the shares of Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.B) are up 13.6%, besting the S&P 500, which is down 3.6% (i).

 

This week’s "Focus" from our economics team is attached.

 

Have a great weekend,

 

Brad

Senior Portfolio Manager and Senior Investment Advisor