It was supposed to be a quiet Sunday. Most of us were looking forward to the long holiday weekend, maybe catching up on chores or finally reading that book on the nightstand. Then the headlines hit. If you’re asking what about today stock market, the answer isn’t found in a ticker tape—since the floor is closed for the holiday—but in the frantic "weekend markets" and the geopolitical bombshell dropped by President Trump.
He’s threatening a 25% tariff on eight European allies. The reason? A renewed, aggressive push to acquire Greenland.
Honestly, it sounds like a plot from a political thriller, but the market reaction is very real. While the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq are dark today, January 18, 2026, for Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the "grey markets" are screaming. The Dow futures are already pointing toward a 0.5% drop when trading resumes Tuesday. Gold is the only thing shining, nudging toward a record $4,642 an ounce as everyone ducks for cover.
The Reality of What About Today Stock Market
When the physical doors are locked, we look at the IG weekend markets and overseas signals to gauge the temperature. Right now, it’s chilly. The FTSE 100 in London is bracing for a nearly 1% slide. Investors hate uncertainty, and threatening your closest allies with massive levies over a land acquisition is the definition of a "black swan" event.
It’s not just about Greenland, though. We’ve had a wild start to 2026. Just last week, we saw a massive rotation. Money was flying out of the "Magnificent 7" tech giants and into small-cap stocks. The Russell 2000 was actually outperforming the S&P 500 by a wide margin—up nearly 8% year-to-date. But this tariff news might just suck the oxygen out of that "broadening" trade.
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Why the Fed Chair Drama Still Matters
Beyond the tariffs, there’s a massive cloud over the Federal Reserve. Trump recently signaled he might keep Kevin Hassett in his current role instead of elevating him to Fed Chair.
Basically, this threw a wrench in everyone's projections. Prediction markets immediately pivoted toward Kevin Warsh as the new frontrunner. Why does this matter to your portfolio? Because the Fed's leadership determines how fast (or slow) those 2026 rate cuts happen. We’re currently looking at sticky inflation around 2.7% to 3%, and the market is desperate for a pilot who won't crash the plane.
Breaking Down the Sectors: Winners and Losers
Even with the weekend freeze, the data from Friday's close gives us a roadmap for Tuesday. Some industries are showing incredible resilience, while others are basically in a freefall.
- Semiconductors: This is the bright spot. The $250 billion U.S.-Taiwan trade deal is fueling a massive build-out of American fabs. Names like Micron (MU) and Nvidia (NVDA) are still riding the AI supercycle, despite the broader geopolitical noise.
- Retail and Consumer Goods: It’s a mixed bag. e.l.f. Beauty (ELF) is crushing it because health and beauty sales jumped 6.7% recently. On the flip side, Home Depot (HD) and Lowe's (LOW) are struggling. People just aren't spending on big home renos like they used to.
- Energy: Surprisingly solid. Bloom Energy is up over 70% so far this year. The shift toward decentralized power for AI data centers is making these "boring" utility-adjacent stocks look like growth rockets.
The $4,600 Gold Question
If you’re watching the what about today stock market updates, you can't ignore the shiny yellow metal. Gold is trading around $4,625 an ounce today. When the world gets weird, people buy gold. With the "Greenland Tariffs" looming, the safe-haven trade is back in full force. Silver is following suit, though it's been a bit more volatile, hovering near $90.
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What to Watch for Tuesday's Opening Bell
When the "real" market opens on Tuesday, expect a gap down. The 43-day government shutdown from late last year is still fresh in everyone's minds, and the temporary spending bill is set to run out of funds by the end of this month. We’re essentially facing a "triple threat":
- Geopolitical tariff wars.
- Fed leadership uncertainty.
- A looming fiscal cliff in D.C.
JP Morgan recently estimated a 35% chance of a recession in 2026. That’s high enough to make anyone nervous, but they also think S&P 500 earnings could grow 15% this year thanks to AI efficiency. It’s a weird, bifurcated world where the tech is great but the politics are messy.
Practical Steps for Your Portfolio
Don't panic-sell on Tuesday morning. That's usually when the "dumb money" exits and the institutions buy the dip. Instead, look at your "risk-off" exposure.
First, check your tech concentration. If you're 90% in AI stocks, this tariff talk might hurt more than you think, especially if European retaliation hits the big tech firms. Second, consider the "boring" winners. The rotation into industrials and materials—companies like Honeywell (HON) or Glencore—seems to have legs because they aren't as tied to the whims of a Nasdaq sell-off.
Finally, keep an eye on the bond market. The 10-year Treasury yield is creeping toward 4.35%. If that keeps rising, it’s going to put a lid on how high stocks can go, no matter how many AI chips Nvidia sells.
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Stay liquid. 2026 is shaping up to be the year of the "active trader" rather than the "passive indexer." The days of 20% annual gains for the S&P 500 might be in the rearview mirror for a while.