Stocks briefly stumbled Thursday after the Supreme Court declined to issue a ruling on tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump under the IEEPA, catching markets that appeared to be positioned for at least some tariff relief.
The S&P 500 dipped into negative territory intraday, while tariff-sensitive stocks swung sharply from gains to losses before stabilizing.
Tariff Losers Feel the Jolt
A basket of so-called “Trump Tariff Losers” compiled by UBS told the story in real time. The group, which includes Under Armour $UA ( ▼ 5.86% ) , American Eagle $AEO ( ▼ 2.91% ) , Yeti $YETI ( ▲ 0.31% ) , Mattel $MAT ( ▼ 3.07% ) , and Deckers Outdoor $DECK ( ▼ 3.35% ) , was up as much as 1.5% early in the session.
Once it became clear there would be no immediate guidance from the Supreme Court of the United States, those gains flipped into losses of roughly 1.7%, reflecting how tightly expectations had been coiled around a favorable outcome.
Relief Delayed, Not Denied
The selloff didn’t last long. Both the broader market and the tariff-exposed stocks clawed back losses as traders reassessed the implications. The lack of a ruling wasn’t a negative shock so much as a delay, and markets appeared willing to look past the short-term uncertainty.
In effect, investors treated the moment as a speed bump, not a dead end.
What the Market Is Really Pricing In
The episode offers a clean snapshot of current sentiment. As prediction markets suggest, equities appear to be pricing in eventual tariff relief, even if the timeline remains murky.
Thursday’s whipsaw made one thing clear: expectations for easing trade pressure are already embedded in stock prices, and any deviation from that script, even temporary, can spark outsized reactions.