The playbook that rattled markets last spring is getting dusted off. Bond and currency investors are actively debating whether to restart the so-called “Sell America” trade, a strategy that involves pulling capital out of US equities, Treasuries, and the dollar simultaneously, as renewed policy uncertainty out of Washington stokes familiar anxieties.
The catalyst this time around: a fresh round of tariff threats against European allies, reportedly linked to ambitions concerning Greenland, combined with ongoing challenges to the Federal Reserve’s independence.
What the original ‘Sell America’ trade looked like
The strategy first crystallized after the “Liberation Day” tariffs announced in April 2025, when the administration’s aggressive trade posture triggered a synchronized selloff across virtually every major US asset class.
The damage was swift and broad. The S&P 500 dropped approximately 12%. The dollar weakened by about 6%. Long-end Treasury yields surged by more than 40 basis points, the opposite of what typically happens during equity selloffs.
