A Country of 56,500 Brings Chaos to U.S. Markets

By Ethan Goldman, junior analyst, Chaikin AnalyticsThe U.S. and China are the world’s primary economic superpowers…

And we all know just how much leverage these countries have over the rest of the globe.

For example, China continued to weaponize its dominance in the metals markets throughout 2025 – including rare earth materials.

Regular readers will recall that we’ve previously talked about these rare earth materials and metals like silver here at Chaikin PowerFeed.

Now, the U.S. has similar practices…

We’ve seen how President Donald Trump uses tariffs as both an economic and political tool.

You’ll remember how Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariff announcements sent shockwaves across the globe. And you’ll probably remember the S&P 500 Index dropping nearly 12% in the days that followed.

So it makes sense that the market would fear another round of tariffs…

This past weekend, Trump took to his Truth Social platform to suggest new tariffs on eight European countries.

Trump stated a 10% tariff would go into effect February 1 if those countries didn’t allow a “complete and total purchase” of Greenland. He also said that the tariffs would increase on June 1 to 25% if a deal wasn’t complete by then.

Again, the U.S. has a ton of leverage in the global economy. And Trump hasn’t been shy about using that leverage against anyone – including America’s European allies.

Of course, the EU isn’t happy about Trump’s saber-rattling over Greenland…

The EU has an economic weapon of last resort up its sleeve. And it refers to this weapon as the “trade bazooka.”

As you may expect, the EU firing that trade bazooka could inject more volatility into our markets. And the whole situation has seen some big twists and turns…Recommended Links:

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U.S. Investors Are Facing Fresh Uncertainty in 2026

This so-called “trade bazooka” is formally known as the EU’s “anti-coercion instrument.” The bloc created it in 2023 to protect it from economic pressure from outside countries.

It allows the EU to place broad restrictions on its economic and financial markets in response to what it deems “coercion.”

Now, the definition of coercion isn’t set in stone. The EU decides if an act is coercion on a case-by-case basis.

But it might be hard for the EU to see new tariffs as anything else.

Folks, it’s uncertain if the EU would actually turn its trade bazooka toward the U.S.

If this happened, the EU could levy new taxes on U.S. tech firms or restrict investments in its markets. The bloc could also enact retaliatory tariffs on the U.S… and that’s even without using the trade bazooka.

Meanwhile, the markets saw the immediate fallout from Trump’s threats on Tuesday…

As regular readers know, we measure the broad market S&P 500 Index with the SPDR S&P 500 Fund (SPY). And we measure the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 Index with the Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ).

After the long weekend, both funds ended Tuesday with a big collapse of more than 2%.

Meanwhile, investors flocked to “safe haven” assets like gold. Shares of the SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) – the largest physically backed gold exchange-traded fund (“ETF”) in the world – surged by nearly 4% on Tuesday.

Then yesterday, stocks clawed back some gains as Trump downplayed using force to acquire Greenland… and later said he would call off the tariffs.

Folks, I don’t have a crystal ball. I don’t know how things will ultimately end up with Greenland and the EU.

And we all know that the situation can change fast when it comes to geopolitical chaos like this. That includes how the market reacts to the next big headline… just like we saw yesterday and on Tuesday.

But panicking and letting your emotions take control isn’t the right move.

Here at the PowerFeed, we’ve said previously that investors will likely face plenty of volatility this year. So it’s critical to stay disciplined.

Remember to keep your personal politics and your emotions out of the picture… particularly when the next big geopolitical headline crops up.

Good investing,

Ethan Goldman

Market View

Major Indexes and Notable Sectors  # HLD:    BULLISH    NEUTRAL    BEARISHDow 30

+1.22%519 6S&P 500

+1.15%112268 120Nasdaq

+1.35%2354 29Small Caps

+1.98%696927 269Bonds

+0.76%Energy

+2.42%616 0

— According to the Chaikin Power Bar, Small Cap stocks are more Bullish than Large Cap stocks. Major indexes are all bearish.*  *  *  *

Sector Tracker

Sector movement over the last 5 daysEnergy+1.44%Industrials+1.27%Materials+1.01%Real Estate+0.39%Consumer Staples+0.26%Health Care+0.25%Utilities-0.35%Information Technology-0.62%Consumer Discretionary-0.7%Financial-1.27%Communication-1.72%*  *  *  *

Industry Focus

Software & Services67756

Over the past 6 months, the Software & Services subsector (XSW) has underperformed the S&P 500 by -16.57%. Its Power Bar ratio, which measures future potential, is Very Weak, with more Bearish than Bullish stocks. It is currently ranked #21 of 21 subsectors.Indicative StocksABTCAmerican Bitcoin CorAGYSAgilysys, Inc.AIC3.ai, Inc.*  *  *  *

Top Movers

GainersMRNA+15.84%INTC+11.72%SNDK+10.63%TDY+9.81%WDC+8.49%LosersAPP-5.83%KHC-5.72%ORCL-3.36%TGT-3.02%SRE-2.77%*  *  *  *

Earnings Report

Earnings SurprisesPLD 
Prologis, Inc. Q4 $1.49 Beat by $0.80TRV 
The Travelers Companies, Inc. Q4 $11.13 Beat by $2.34HAL 
Halliburton Company Q4 $0.69 Beat by $0.14TDY 
Teledyne Technologies Incorporated Q4 $6.30 Beat by $0.47KMI 
Kinder Morgan, Inc. Q4 $0.39 Beat by $0.02*  *  *  *

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