http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/ct-dow-jones-markets-20170802-story.html
Nevertheless, if you watch the news, or read his tweets, Trump wants to take credit whenever the stock market does well:
The question still remains: is the stock market over-valued? & will there be any repercussions for Trump if the market begins to lose value?
As far as repercussions, it's hard to believe things could get much worse for the Donald. Because today there's a Quinnipiac poll indicating only 33% (just his base) of American voters approve of how Trump is performing as president:
http://www.cnn.com/2017/08/02/politics/trump-approval-new-low-quinnipiac-poll/index.html
The more interesting question becomes: is the market over-valued?
Of course it's hard to predict. According to this NYTimes article, at the same time the market closed above 22,000, the U.S. dollar has lost about 10 percent of its value against "a basket of six major currencies" which also benefits the Dow:
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/01/business/dealbook/dow-22000-stock-markets-dollar-value.html
"Beyond the stimulative effect that a struggling dollar has on global investment flows, some analysts point to another, more specific reason that might explain the near perfect correlation between the dollar’s fall and the Dow’s rise.
The Dow, much more so than the S.&P. 500 and the Nasdaq composite index, has a weightier concentration in multinationals that rely on exporting their goods overseas, like Caterpillar, Boeing and Coca-Cola, to name a few.
The weak dollar and strong growth in Asia, Europe and many emerging markets will be a boon for these companies, a number of which suffered in past years when the dollar was ascendant and worries about Europe and developing nations abounded.
“There is no doubt that the big news — a drop in the dollar — is benefiting the Dow more than other indices,” said Jim Paulsen, chief investment strategist for the Leuthold Group, an investment firm based in Minneapolis."
But there are still problems that could get out of hand: especially when it comes to car sales.
Another NYTimes article is titled:
"Auto Sales Contract as Demand Stalls for Trucks and S.U.V.s"
'An acceleration in the auto-sales slowdown could have important political and economic effects. The auto industry is the country’s largest manufacturing sector, and automakers, parts suppliers and dealers together employ more than seven million people. President Trump had hoped the car industry would serve as a job creator as his administration took office. That now seems unlikely because manufacturers are trimming production as sales slump.'
'One issue that may be at play is a continuing rise in vehicle prices, making new trucks and S.U.V.s an increasing stretch for many Americans. Large S.U.V.s and pickups typically sell for at least $40,000.
In July, the average amount a consumer borrowed to buy a new vehicle was $30,689, 17 percent more than five years ago, according to Edmunds, the automotive data provider. The average monthly car payment was $509.
“That’s a pretty hefty chunk of change for most people to handle,” Ms. Caldwell said.'
And speaking of auto sales, the Chicago tribune article (link above) mentions "Car retailer AutoNation also had a disappointing quarter as prices for used cars fell". & then of course, retailers continue to stumble.
Like I said, it's hard to predict what the market will do (just ask CNBC's analysts) but paying attention to trends in sales of new & used vehicles seems like a good indicator of where the market is headed.
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