The first week of March was when we got our first prospect saying that given all the tariffs, flip-flopping, and uncertainty he was going to put his buy-sell process on hold. No wonder there’s concern given (some of) the WSJ headlines from March 10-15.
- Consumer Sentiment Sours
- Markets Wake Up to New Reality
- Market Plunges, Recession Worries Spread
- Wary Investors Play Defense
Over the weekend I was talking to my friend Erik Strom with Ironridge Capital, and he commented about the stock market, interest rates, etc. I told him I’m not worried about the stock market for myself, but I’m worried business sellers and buyers will get nervous as they fear:
- Recession
- A business (especially with acquisition debt) having trouble
- The seller having to take the business back
My opinion is the frantic action spooks people more than if it was a careful process. FYI, Bill Clinton cut over 377,000 federal jobs and balanced the budget in fiscal years 1998 and 2001 (the only times we’ve had a balanced budget since 1970). He did it after a six-month review and it took a lot longer to fully implement (see this from Snopes).
All we can do is wait and see.
“We are our own dragons as well as our own heroes, and we have to rescue ourselves from ourselves.” Tom Robbins