Today the market surged higher despite the worst jobless claims data since September 2017 and also despite reports that Trump has no intention of delaying the December 15 tariff deadline. Investors apparently are betting that an eleventh-hour deal will get made before Sunday, but personally I'm not willing to gamble on that.
If the US does impose $150 billion of new tariffs on consumer goods from China, retail companies and tech companies will be disproportionately affected. I shuffled some of my tech and retail shares into weed stock Aurora Cannabis and pharmaceutical companies Amyris and Lannett this morning after seeing some positive headlines about those companies. I also bought small positions in a gold miners fund and an inverse oil fund just for funsies. Those should both gain if no trade deal materializes.
Most of my money is now in cash, however, and I will choose a re-entry once I know what's going on with tariffs. I will definitely miss some profit if a deal gets made, but that's okay. I take safer bets; I don't play Trump roulette.