The Dow Jones Industrial Average measures the average price of the 30 most valuable stocks which are bought and sold on the NASDAQ and the New York Stock Exchange. Examples of companies in this index are Apple, Boeing, Coca-Cola, General Electric, Microsoft, and Verizon. The Dow is the most watched stock market index globally. The prices of stocks that determine the price of the index seem to be performing better, and Trump is happy about it.
The great recession
The Great Recession lasted one year and six months. During this time, the Dow moved from highs of 12,800 on April 2008 to lows of 7,062 in February 2009. The unemployment rate was 5 percent in early 2008; it went up to 10 percent in October 2009 according to the U.S Department of labor. Ever since the recession, the U.S economy has not performed well due to high debt levels, outsourcing of U.S jobs abroad, as well as low priced imports from China.
Making America Great Again
Trump's stance on making America great again seems to be working. He has regularly vowed to protect U.S workers and manufacturers from foreign exploitation.
The 30 companies that represent the Dow many be performing better as a result of Trump's economic measures.
Donald Trump also plans to get the U.S out of NAFTA as well as increase tariffs imposed on Chinese products. Most businesses have preferred to have their production facilities remain in the U.S due to uncertainties regarding international trade policies between the U.S, and its trading partners under Trump's presidency.
Trump also plans to cut development and military assistance to foreign countries including Africa. Trump was not fond of the Paris climate change agreement. He argued that the climate change discussion is a "hoax by the Chinese" and that U.S jobs in the mining sector were being lost.
He also plans to cut remittances to the U.N and has vowed to pull the U.S out of NATO. All these four measures are aimed at ensuring that the U.S saves money and that the savings are used on domestic spending. These plans seem to be working.
The downside of Trump's policies
The Dow may be rising due to Trump's economic policies, but economists argue that in the future, businesses will find it hard to hire due to a low unemployment rate. Increasing tariffs on Chinese imports will cause inflation because the changes in prices of the imports will be passed on to U.S consumer. High inflation will affect the U.S economy, the dollar, and the Dow. Trump's supporters seem to be happy as he is keeping his campaign promises of "Making America Great Again."