Canada has introduced a relief period for businesses from its counter-tariffs on some U.S. imports. Those tariffs were put in place in response to President Donald Trump's tariffs on steel, aluminum, cars and other goods.
Economists and financial advisors on both sides of the border are trying to keep up with the evolving trade war and volatile stock market. Guests on Tuesday's Vermont Edition explained some of the widely used economic terms and shared foundational advice for weathering periods of financial uncertainty.
Don't act in haste
As the stock market plunges and recovers, and tariffs come and go, it can be hard to sit tight, but Dan Cunningham believes that's exactly what you should be doing. Cunningham is the founder and CEO of the Burlington-based financial advisory One Day in July.
"Watching more financial news and trading the markets based on that is almost certainly a recipe to perform worse than an index fund over the years," he said.
Cunningham often reminds his clients to keep a long-term perspective when it comes to their portfolios. "From 2009 forward, it's been a booming stock market, and you can go long periods of time with returns that are sub-optimal. They might be negative or they might be flat. That is part of investing," he said.
Look to history for context
For many decades, the economic relationship between the U.S and Canada has been centered on economic integration and free trade. "We generally don't see tariffs coming into play at all," said Moshe Lander, a senior lecturer of economics at Concordia University in Montreal.
In 1930, the U.S. passed the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act in an effort to recover from the 1929 stock market crash and protect U.S. manufacturers and farmers from foreign competition.
"By trying to limit the exposure to trade and reliance on its trade partners, it figured that it could insulate itself," Lander explained. Instead, the tariffs led to a sharp decline in international trade, which added to the economic demise that eventually turned into the Great Depression.
After World War II, the U.S. and Canada began formalizing economic integration agreements, starting with the founding of the World Trade Organization and continuing up to the CUSMA Agreement between Canada, the U.S. and Mexico that President Donald Trump supported during his first term.
Rely on trusted voices, not the day's headlines
When emotions run high, it's particularly important to rely on an objective perspective. Depending on the resources available and level of interest, working with a financial advisor or financial coach could be an option. You could also clue in a trusted friend who knows about finances.
"You need someone else in it with you who's not emotionally triggered," said Kathleen Burns Kingsbury, a money mindset coach in Waitsfield and the founder of KBK Wealth Connection.
Kingsbury also suggested the book, "The Psychology of Money" by Morgan Housel, and the "Human-Centric Investing Podcast" as two other trusted resources.
Broadcast live on Tuesday, April 15, 2025, at noon; rebroadcast at 7 p.m.
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