Your 5-Step Plan for Tariff Chaos  | | Shah Gilani
Chief Investment Strategist | Well, it finally happened. President Trump unleashed the tariff bombshell I've been warning about. He called it a "Liberation Day" for American manufacturing. For investors, Thursday looked more like Armageddon. The Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged nearly 1,700 points - a single-day drop of over 4.5%. The S&P 500 wasn't far behind, down 4.85%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 plunged 5.41%. And the Russell 2000, the broadest barometer of America's economic foundation, got shellacked to the tune of nearly 6.5%. Friday morning futures painted an even bleaker picture: losses of 3.5% to 4.5% across the board. That's not a dip. That's a gut punch. I've been vocal about the real dangers that lay ahead of us. Over the past month, I've been trimming positions across all my subscriber newsletter portfolios. We raised cash, rotated out of vulnerable sectors, and added some protective plays. Plus, I added a handful of bearish bets that would pay handsomely from any Liberation Day fallout. We cashed out of two of those positions on Thursday, each for 300% gains! Why? Because the turn was obvious. You don't need a crystal ball to read momentum shifts when you've been trading for 40 years. You just need the guts to act. Tariff Shock Was Inevitable Trump overtly telegraphed his actions. Not so much in the headlines, mind you. The mainstream media didn't want to believe he'd do it. But the data, the rhetoric, the escalating tension with China, the worsening trade deficit all pointed to this outcome. You can find countless videos of him promoting tariffs going back decades. While the President framed it as economic liberation, traders heard only one thing: uncertainty. And markets hate uncertainty more than they hate bad news. Wall Street had been hoping for a resolution and stability. Instead, they got an open-ended threat with no timeline or clarity on who might be spared. So they ran for the exits. This Isn't the Bottom… Yet Let me be blunt: the selling's not over. We're entering a volatility cycle. That means big swings, sharp drops, and lots of confusion. This will hurt if you're not prepared. We're likely heading into a bear market (a 20% drop from the highs). The Russell 2000 is already there. The Nasdaq 100 got there today. For sectors like technology, this pullback is going to be extremely painful. But here's what you need to understand: This is where the opportunity begins. Quality Stocks Are Going On Sale Smart money doesn't wait for the bottom. It starts buying when everyone else is too scared to. That time is approaching fast. We're nearing levels where excellent companies with fortress balance sheets, solid profit margins, and dominant market positions are trading at prices we haven't seen in years. Don't fall into the trap of trying to time the exact bottom. That's a fool's game. Instead, start averaging in. Add small positions. Build slowly. Take advantage of the panic. It's okay if stocks drop another 5%, 10%, or even 15% from here. Because when the next bull market starts (and it will), you'll be in at enviable prices. The Trump Put Is Coming Remember: Trump doesn't like market crashes. He's tied his presidency to the stock market performance. While this week's tariff salvo shocked Wall Street, it won't be the last word. There will be a Trump Put. He'll walk back some of these tariffs, signal exemptions, or open the door to negotiations. He always does. He pushes until the markets scream. Then he pivots. It's classic Trump. Markets will rally when he does. And behind that? The Fed. Don't forget about the Powell Put. The Federal Reserve has repeatedly shown it's willing to step in to support the markets through rate cuts, liquidity injections, and even buying securities outright. They've done it before, and they'll do it again. Between the Trump Put and the Powell Put, the floor exists somewhere. When we hit it, the reversal will be sharp, sudden, and profitable for those bold enough to buy on the way down. What You Should Do Right Now Here's my game plan, and yours, if you're smart: - Trim the fat. Dump overleveraged companies, speculative names with no earnings, or bloated tech stocks. This is no time to hold garbage.
- Raise cash. You need dry powder to strike when opportunities present themselves.
- Start a buy list. Identify companies you want to own long-term. Look for strong cash flows, wide moats, and cheap valuations.
- Begin averaging in. Use small buys and layer your entries. Build your positions carefully.
- Don't panic. Volatility is opportunity wearing a scary mask. Most investors run. The smart ones see through the disguise.
This isn't the end of the market… It's the beginning of a new phase where fundamentals matter, and active management beats passive. Your grit, knowledge, and willingness to act will set you up for massive gains when the dust settles. This is where wealth is made. I saw it coming. I'm guiding you through it. And I'll be here when it's time to ride the next bull wave. Cheers, Shah Want more content like this? | | | | | | 
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