Bank of America says ‘Trump put’ is alive and well

A trader on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange sits at his desk as pictures of President Donald Trump raising his fist after an assassination attempt and other news clippings are visible in the foreground. (Credit: Michael M. Santiago—Getty Images)

• President Donald Trump regularly boasted about the stock market’s performance during his first term in office, but he’s recently brushed off concerns about his on-again, off-again tariff threats rattling investors. Still, BofA credit strategists say recent developments signal the administration and the Federal Reserve are both primed to react if equity prices plummet.

The stock market selloff earlier this month appeared to disabuse investors of the notion President Donald Trump would intervene to support equity prices if his policies spooked markets. However, Bank of America strategists say the so-called “Trump put,” a play on options terminology, remains alive and well following reports the administration has significantly narrowed a batch of tariffs set to be announced April 2, which the president has referred to as “Liberation Day.”