Tariff Tantrum 2026: A Market Blip or Something More? | AWM Insights #235

Key takeaways

• Tariff tantrum headlines may shake markets, but these events are most often a blip, not a game-ending mistake.

• Allowing emotion to dictate investment action generally undermines sound strategy and long-term results.

• Market volatility—including equity selloffs and gold rallies—is a normal part of pursuing higher returns.

• Over narrow windows, gold and silver can outperform, but history shows equities are the more compelling investment when measured by decades.

• Headlines about outsized treasury moves, like Denmark’s $100 million sale, often exaggerate the real impact—proportionally, it’s just a drop in the ocean.

Blips Versus Game-Changers in the Market Arena

The latest round of tariff talk has all the markings of a market “blip.” This is not the first time markets have experienced saber-rattling over tariffs; as the podcast hosts note, “we’ve already gone through it once” during 2025. Even then, as now, volatility was pronounced but temporary. Investors with a view to generations recognize the difference between a drive that stalls and a season-ending turnover. “It’s not anything that's gonna be that bad, in my opinion,” is how AWM’s specialists frame the current environment—clear-eyed and steady.

Year-to-date performance can swing wildly, as evidence by the S&P now sitting flat after a dramatic drop erased January’s gains. Step back further, 2025 was a “phenomenal year.” The daily scoreboard might say zero, but elite athletes and families know that championships are earned through consistency, not a single quarter’s momentum. Each day’s move, headline, or spike in volatility matters less than the system that supports generational wealth.

The Process Is the Protector

News and social media thrive on drama—the more polarizing, the better. Coaching families through moments like these means helping filter signal from noise. Noticing developments is prudent; reacting emotionally is dangerous. “Taking that further to an actual act is a full another step, another ball game,” the team advises. Acting with haste, based on anxiety rather than evidence, gets punished in both markets and on the field.

Disciplined, “process-driven” strategy remains the edge. It guides investing decisions with data, not with feelings. It means sticking to the playbook, not rewriting it in response to turbulence. Multi-generational wealth is sustained precisely because the strategy runs deeper than the headlines. Families win—season after season—by trusting preparation, coordination, and expertise instead of second-guessing after each play.

Volatility, Rotation, and an Honest Look at Assets

Risk is part of the contract for reward. Market selloffs—even those triggered by fear-driven headlines—are a reminder that volatility is normal. “Equity markets reward risk... part of risk is volatility.” Gold and silver, which rallied during recent uncertainty, illustrate this tension. Over weeks or months, these assets can outpace equities, but “if you push those timelines back, the use case and the investment case for gold and silver both become a lot weaker.” Winning teams understand short-term rotations are expected—enduring value emerges over the long haul.

The media’s appetite for sensationalism distorts perspective. Headlines about “Denmark selling a hundred million dollars worth” of treasuries conjure panic, yet “that is a drop in an ocean from a relative standpoint.” The art of stewardship is knowing when to tune out the noise and stick to a developed system.

Long Game Wins Every Season

Legacy is not defined by the headlines. At AWM Capital, optimism is fused with process. Families are coached to focus well beyond the news cycle, centering vision in process, discipline, and the moments that carry meaning across generations. “Markets do go up over time if you’re disciplined,” is the consistent theme of the podcast. Wealth that lasts is earned by those who hold fast to their strategy—on good days and rough ones alike. That’s how you build a flourishing family for a hundred years and beyond.