![\"How](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/trump_stock11770949736.jpg\")
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The impact of U.S. President Donald Trump\u2019s 25% reciprocal tariffs on India, along with an additional 25% punitive tariff over Russian oil purchases, was felt not only by businessmen and international traders but also by the middle and upper-middle classes.<\/p>\n
Over the past decade, growing digital awareness encouraged many Indians to shift from traditional bank fixed deposits to mutual funds in search of potentially higher returns.<\/p>\n
For years, the bullish trend in the BSE Sensex reassured investors. While bank FDs offered 5\u20137% interest, mutual funds delivered strong double-digit returns during extended bull phases, sometimes ranging between 20\u201345% over two to three years.<\/p>\n
This performance created confidence that equity investments would continue to outperform traditional savings instruments over time.<\/p>\n
However, during the period of tariff tensions and broader global uncertainty, the Sensex fell from a peak of around 86,000 to nearly 70,000, sharply impacting equity portfolios and mutual fund investments.<\/p>\n
Those who invested in mid-2024, when markets were near their peak, faced significant short-term losses.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt has been more than one year since I invested in a popular mutual fund. Sadly, my investment is still at a 10% loss. Had I kept the money in an FD, I would have earned at least 7% interest by now,\u201d said a retired professor.<\/p>\n
A software employee shared a similar story: \u201cIn 2022, I invested in a mutual fund and withdrew in early 2024, reaping a 40% profit. That was phenomenal. Encouraged by that experience, I cancelled all my FDs and invested only in mutual funds. Now I am at a loss. I am waiting to withdraw when the Sensex rises to break even. I probably should have invested again when markets corrected, but I feared further declines.\u201d<\/p>\n
Even small investors felt the pinch. A flower vendor in Hyderabad said, \u201cI invested in mutual funds to reap good returns, but right now it is in loss.\u201d<\/p>\n
Although mutual funds clearly state that investments are subject to market risks, the extended bull cycle in recent years had built strong investor confidence.<\/p>\n
The downturn of 2025 served as a reminder that equity markets move in cycles and are influenced by global and domestic factors.<\/p>\n
Now, with reports of tariff easing and improving global signals, investors are cautiously hopeful.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere has been a good rise in the Sensex after news that tariffs may be eased. It covered much of the loss, though we are still in the red. I expect gradual recovery if global conditions stabilize,\u201d said a banker.<\/p>\n
While many faced losses, several regular investors also made gains during the volatility.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe fall from 86,000 to 70,000 was an opportunity. I increased my investments during the correction. As markets recovered, I made a decent profit,\u201d mentioned a businessman.<\/p>\n
\u201cStocks and mutual funds reward informed and disciplined investors who understand trends and risk. They should not be treated like guaranteed-return FDs. Timing, patience, and risk management matter,\u201d he concluded.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The impact of U.S. President Donald Trump\u2019s 25% reciprocal tariffs on India, along with an additional 25% punitive…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":424039,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[84,141,1294,308,42750,4767,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-424038","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-economy","8":"tag-business","9":"tag-donald-trump","10":"tag-economy","11":"tag-india","12":"tag-middle-class","13":"tag-stock-market","14":"tag-uk","15":"tag-united-kingdom","16":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/424038","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=424038"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/424038\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/424039"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=424038"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=424038"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=424038"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}