This Weekly Financial Markets Update reviews the top market headlines: Global Tariff War Triggers Market Turmoil, Hiring Beats Expectations in March, Business Activity Surveys Slip
  • The S&P 500 index fell 9.1% last week
  • The U.S. economy added 228,000 jobs in March
  • The ISM Manufacturing Index registered 49.0% in March

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Top Three Market Headlines

Global Tariff War Triggers Market Turmoil: Global markets were rocked late last week after President Trump on Wednesday announced a higher-than-expected series of reciprocal tariffs on a multitude of countries. The plan imposes a 10% baseline duty on all imports starting April 5 plus higher rates on certain countries, including Japan (24%), the European Union (20%), and China (34%) creating a total 54% rate on the latter after including two previously announced tariffs totaling 20%. China immediately retaliated with plans to apply a matching 34% levy on all U.S. imports starting April 10. The S&P 500 index plunged more than 10% over Thursday and Friday to close at 5,074, its lowest level since May of 2024.

Hiring Beats Expectations in March: The U.S. Department of Labor reported last week that the U.S. economy added 228,000 jobs in March. This exceeded economists' expectations of a 140,000 increase and was the highest tally in three months―though the number of additions from the prior two months was also reduced by 48,000. Job gains in March came primarily in health care, transportation, and warehousing, while federal government employment declined. During the month, the unemployment rate ticked up to 4.2% from 4.1%, while average hourly wages rose at a 3.8% annual rate, an eight-month low.

Business Activity Surveys Slip: The Institute for Supply Management (ISM) reported that its ISM Manufacturing Index registered 49.0% in March, down from 50.3% in February, caused by a drop in new orders, employment, and supplier deliveries. This marked the first month this year the index was below the 50% threshold that differentiates expansion of business activity from contraction. Over in the services sector, ISM's Services Index came in at 50.8% for the month. While this was the ninth straight month of expanding activity, this was a decrease from 53.8% in February and was the lowest reading since June of 2024.

As of April 04, 2025 Week Quarter-To-Date Year-To-Date One-Year
MSCI All Country World -7.87% -7.58% -8.80% 0.31%
S&P 500 -9.05% -9.56% -13.42% -0.08%
Russell 2000 -9.64% -9.18% -17.79% -9.83%
MSCI EAFE -6.90% -4.95% 1.58% -0.17%
MSCI Emerging Markets -2.90% -1.20% 1.69% 6.18%
FTSE NAREIT Equity -6.91% -7.82% -6.98% 5.09%
Bloomberg Commodity -5.70% -6.27% 2.05% 2.28%
Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate 1.12% 0.88% 3.69% 6.39%

US Dept. of Labor 4/4/2025. ISM 4/3/2025, WSJ 4/4/2025. FactSet. Data from Morningstar Direct. Returns for periods greater than one year are annualized. Investment advisory, named and independent fiduciary services are offered through Gallagher Fiduciary Advisors, LLC, an SEC Registered Investment Adviser. Gallagher Fiduciary Advisors, LLC does not express an investment opinion regarding any specific commodity, sector or individual security. Unless otherwise expressly noted, the contents of this communication do not constitute securities or investment advice, nor should this communication be construed as an opinion regarding the appropriateness of any investment. Gallagher Fiduciary Advisors, LLC is a single- member, limited-liability company, with Gallagher Benefit Services, Inc. as its single member. Neither Arthur J. Gallagher & Co., Gallagher Fiduciary Advisors, LLC nor their affiliates provide accounting, legal or tax advice. The information provided cannot take into account all the various factors that may affect your particular situation, therefore you should consult your Gallagher Fiduciary Advisors consultant before acting upon any information or recommendation contained herein to discuss the suitability of the information/recommendation for your specific situation.