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CNN’s Harry Enten Says Americans Believe Trump Is Handling Stock Market Better Than Past Presidents

[Screenshot/CNN]

CNN chief data reporter Harry Enten said Friday that Americans have more confidence in the stock market under President Donald Trump in comparison to past presidents.

A majority of Americans, 50%, believe the stock market will rise in six months under Trump, which is higher than the 42% and 41% of Americans who held this view under former Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama at this point in their second terms. This indicates a positive sign for the Trump administration while Americans have tended to hold a negative view of Trump’s economy overall.

“Take a look at where, at this point, Donald Trump is in his second term. Compare that to Barack Obama, George W. Bush, say stocks will rise in the next six months. Look at that, 50 percent of Americans say they believe that stocks will rise in the next six months,” Enten said. “That is, in fact, the highest percentage for any president in their second term at this point in the 21st century.” 

“So what you’re seeing here is it’s not just that Americans think that the stock market is doing well now,” Enten continued. “They expect it to continue to do well. And that, that 50 percent is quite unusual for a president at this point in their second term.” 

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A majority of Americans have expressed dissatisfaction with Trump’s economy, with an average of 55% disapproving of his handling of the economy, according to RealClearPolitics. A CBS News poll from early February also found that 55% of Americans believe prices have been going up, indicating that they are unsatisfied with Trump’s handling of inflation, and a plurality also expect the economy to slow throughout the year.

Americans have become significantly more satisfied with the stock market since April 2025, when the markets took a steep downturn due to Trump’s reciprocal tariffs. The percentage of Americans who believe the stock market is good rose from 27% in April to 40% currently, while those viewing it negatively dropped from 56% to 22% in that same time frame, Enten noted.

A plurality of Democratic and independent voters, 30%, believed that the stock market is in “fairly good” shape, according to a CBS News/YouGov poll from late January. Only 10% of Democrats and 9% of independents rated the markets as “very bad.”

“And I will also note that even among Democrats it’s split and among independents, who have been such a bad group for the president of the United States, in fact, they, a plurality of them, believe that the stock market is in shape,” Enten said. 

The prediction markets estimated as of Friday that there was a 65% chance the S&P 500 would go up in 2026, which is the best economic indicator for the Trump administration.

Exit polls indicated in the 2024 election that voters prioritized the economy and immigration, which ultimately led to Trump’s victory over former Vice President Kamala Harris. While Americans have been dissatisfied with Trump’s handling of inflation, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose by 2.4% in January, which was less than expected.

Major U.S. stock indexes have reached record-highs. the S&P 500 climbed approximately 20.9% from Nov. 5, 2024, to early February.

After the S&P 500 went up by about 16% in 2025, Trump oversaw the second-highest annualized return in the stock market since March 1897, when former President William McKinley was president, as of mid-January, according to Yahoo News.