Our retirement savings are on the front line of Donald Trump’s trade wars, although there are things people can do to limit the damage.
Bruce Gordon, who retired in 2023 after 40 years working as an IT software specialist, is working out how to respond.
He thought he had his pension plans sorted, leaving two of his pots invested in the stock market via drawdown in the hope they would grow in value over time.
Now they’ve been thrown into disarray by Donald Trump’s trade wars.
So far, somebody with £100,000 in a pension or Stocks and Shares ISA can expect to have lost £6,200 on average, and the figure is rising.
That works out as a loss of 6.2% but Bruce reckons his own pensions have lost more than 10% of their value after the stock market crash of the last week.
Bruce, 61, has been drawing down on two personal pension funds, money that he needs to last him 25 or 30 years.
They’re with Scottish Widows and online pension consolidation service PensionBee. “They’re falling right now and make no mistake, it hurts.
“Monday has brought further losses, and it’s hard to tell where the bottom might be.”
Even if Trump eases some of his tariffs, the damage has been done. Further pain is coming down the line.
“With more negative economic news likely over the coming months, there’s a real possibility this downturn could become quite painful,” Bruce says.
“A global recession seems quite plausible as economies and trade patterns adjust, which could delay the stock market recovery.”
Navigating the sell-off isn’t easy, especially since timing pension withdrawals can be tricky at the best of times, with plenty of hurdles to avoid.
Bruce, who lives in the South of England, plans to use tax-free lump sums from his pension to clear his mortgage.
He said: “When I retired, I took part of my 25% tax-free lump sum and have since been living off that, along with monthly tax-free withdrawals from my pension pot.
“I plan to continue this approach, drawing the minimum needed from the pot in the hope that the remaining balance will have time to recover as markets stabilise.”
Despite today’s market chaos, Bruce remains optimistic about the global economy and the outlook for his savings over the longer term.
As an IT specialist, he thinks technology can drive future economic and stock market growth.
“I believe the full impact of AI and robotics has yet to be realised. As these technologies mature, they could significantly reduce production costs across many sectors, making goods and services more affordable.
“If that happens, it could drive a strong rebound in equities, making them even more attractive in the years to come.”
But today, Bruce is hunkering down. Just like the rest of us.
