SFM Observer- April 2025

Glenn Sweeney |

SFM OBSERVER

April 2025 Recap

A CONCISE REVIEW OF THE MONTH IN THE INVESTMENT MARKETS

Issued: May 7, 2025

 

The Dow closed the month of April at 40,669 for a monthly loss of -1,332 points or -3.2%.  The Trump Tariffs are still front and center and have been causing volatility in the investment markets because of the on/off nature of statements coming out of Washington and the fact that they are beginning to have an impact on ordering and shipping goods globally.  The 90-day pause was a temporary band aid but what happens when the 90 days is up?  More uncertainty and more business plans on ice.

 

Some interesting events from the month just passed:

 

  • The 10 biggest consulting firms to the U.S. government have been instructed to cut their fees.  Accenture, Booz Allen Hamilton, IBM and Leidos have offered up billions in cuts but the Trump administration is looking for more.  The top ten firms are in line to receive $69 billion in 2025.
  • The big three cellphone providers (Verizon, T-Mobile, AT&T) are all offering price locks to their customers that are tired of constant price hikes.  Verizon is offering a three- year price lock to a large swath of their customers.
  • Ben Cohen of the famous Ben & Jerry’s ice cream company is attempting to buy it back from Unilever.  They sold the company to Unilever 20 years ago in a difficult negotiation and the relationship has gradually deteriorated.  Ben & Jerrys is political, opinionated and makes social statements that can be controversial and difficult for a multinational company.
  • Warehouse property values could take a hit as a result of the Trump tariffs.  Many developers and investors have poured money into warehouse and distribution facilities over the past five years as online shopping and reshoring supply chains took hold after covid.  Now with extreme tariffs blocking international trade, some of those facilities will be empty.
  • Even if you are on the win list for tariffs, you can still lose.  Ford makes more cars in the U.S. than the other major car manufacturers but they just stopped shipping the F-150, Mustangs, Broncos and Navigators to China because of retaliatory tariffs imposed by China.  This is the unpredictable nature of a tariff war.
  • Harvard’s problems with the Trump administration could spill over into the Boston economy.  Harvard has a big local impact on real estate, employment, biotech and research in the Boston area and having over $2 billion in grants canceled as well as possibly losing tax exempt status could pull down the whole city.

 

Thank you for reading this issue of the SFM OBSERVER.  If you have any comments or questions, please send us a reply.  If you have a friend or associate that might be interested in the SFM OBSERVER, feel free to forward this email.

 

Until next month,

 

Glenn Sweeney CFA