US Investors Conserving Cash Amid Tariff Troubles

Last week was a rough one for the stock market following the announcement of new tariffs.

But as The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported Saturday (April 5), investors are choosing to keep their cash close to home rather than buying shares at lower prices.

During the first few days of the month, investors pumped upwards of $60 billion into money market funds, the report said. This has pushed assets in these funds to $7.4 trillion, the highest level since at least 1972.

According to the report, market observers have kept an eye on cash investments in recent years, expecting that much of it would eventually move into stocks. Such a shift seems to be in limbo for now, WSJ added.

“I’m just sitting on as much cash as possible,” said Matthew Shaughnessy, an investor who runs an auto repair shop and a pet spa in Idaho. “If I try to catch this falling knife, I’m just going to get cut over and over and over on the way down.”

Before Trump announced his new tariffs last week, Shaughnessy said he sold his Rivian and Roblox stock in anticipation of a wave of selloffs. He doesn’t intend to purchase additional stocks until more normal market conditions resume.

For now, as PYMNTS wrote last week, “Many consumers are walking a financial tightrope, juggling everyday expenses with unexpected needs and have-it-now desires.”

New research from PYMNTS Intelligence finds some surprising shifts in financial behaviors, with changes in money management habits and a growing dependence on credit to bridge the gaps in an uncertain environment.

That research focused on two groups of consumers. The first are planners, who take a strategic and proactive approach, consistently paying off credit card balances, and building up savings for short-term and long-term needs.

The other group are the reactors, who deal with monthly bills on the fly and in some cases choosing which bills to pay. These consumers tend to carry higher credit card balances and have less saved, making them rely more on credit when unexpected costs arise.

However, the balance between those groups has begun to shift. According to “New Reality Check: The Paycheck-to-Paycheck Report,” a recent PYMNTS Intelligence report, just 40% of consumers identified as planners in January 2025 — down around 20% since February 2024, when about half of consumers 1 in 2 were planners. 

“The decline suggests more Americans are facing mounting financial strain,” PYMNTS wrote last week. “Surprisingly, that shift to reactor is notable among higher-income earners making at least $100,000 a year; over 11 months since February 2024, the number of planners in that group plunged by 25%.”

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