Trump’s Tariffs. Gold at $5,000. Tech Down 20%. The Rotation Is Real. Most Investors Are Still Sleeping On It

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Markets had a rough week. 

Supreme Court just struck down Trump's tariffs in a 6-3 vote. 

But something more important was happening, a real, measurable rotation out of tech and into sectors most investors stopped watching years ago.

Here's what actually moved markets this week, what it means, and what you should be watching next.

Key Points:

This one landed Friday morning. And it moved markets fast.

The Supreme Court ruled 6-3 that Trump's sweeping emergency tariffs violated federal law. Chief Justice John Roberts wrote the majority opinion, finding that the emergency authority Trump relied on "falls short" of granting the president power to impose tariffs of unlimited scope without clear congressional authorization. 

Markets reacted immediately. The S&P 500 jumped 0.5% and the Nasdaq surged 0.6% right after the ruling. Treasury yields climbed, the 10-year hit 4.09%. The dollar strengthened across the board. But the rally didn't hold clean.

Here's why. More than $175 billion in tariffs have already been collected — and the ruling left the refund question completely unresolved. That uncertainty is what caused the intraday chop.

And the tariffs aren't simply gone. The White House has been preparing contingency plans using other statutes to achieve virtually identical tariff levels. Clearbrook Expect reimposition through different legal channels in the weeks ahead.

Key Points:

This is the story most investors are missing.

While tech bleeds, materials, industrials, energy, and consumer staples are each up more than 12% this year. International markets are doing even better. MSCI EAFE is up 8%, and MSCI Emerging Markets has gained over 11% in 2026.

Edward Jones noted the leadership shift this week as one of the clearest sector rotations in recent memory. And it's not just a short squeeze or a temporary flight to safety. The earnings data is backing it up. "Old economy" companies are delivering, and investors are rewarding them.

If your ETF exposure is still tech-heavy, this week was a real-world stress test. Diversified, sector-aware allocations are showing exactly why they exist.

Key Points:

Gold held near $5,000 per ounce this week. That number would have sounded extreme two years ago. It doesn't anymore.

Here's the data point that stood out this week: gold ETFs saw $19 billion in inflows in January 2026 alone, the highest single month in history. Total global gold ETF assets under management hit a record $669 billion at the end of January, according to J.P. Morgan.

This comes after $89 billion in annual inflows to gold ETFs in 2025, also a record. The dollar had its best week since October, oil rallied nearly 6% since Monday, and geopolitical pressure from the Middle East kept safe-haven demand elevated.

Long-term analyst targets on gold range from $7,000 to $10,000, driven by expectations of rate cuts and sustained geopolitical risk. That's a wide range. But the direction of the trade is clearly not reversing.

Key Points:

Meta this week committed $600 billion in the U.S. AI infrastructure spending through 2028, including $135 billion in 2026 alone.

That's not a typo. The deal includes a massive long-term partnership with NVIDIA to deploy Grace CPUs, next-gen GPUs, and Vera Rubin rack-scale systems across Meta's AI data centers. Meta is also partnering with AMD for in-house silicon and evaluating Google TPUs for deployment in 2027.

$NVDA gained 1.6% on Wednesday following the announcement. $AMZN rose nearly 2% after regulatory filings showed Bill Ackman's Pershing Square increased its Amazon stake by 65% in Q4, making it the fund's third-largest holding.

Analysts aren't backing down either. Oppenheimer reiterated an Outperform on NVDA, and Citi said to "add to positions" ahead of earnings, citing structural tailwinds in gaming, data centers, and autonomous vehicles. Morgan Stanley reiterated Amazon as a Top Pick, projecting AWS could grow 30% in 2026–2027.

Key Points:

Three separate diplomatic tracks ran in parallel this week.

Ukraine-Russia: The third round of US-Ukraine-Russia talks took place in Geneva on February 17–18, led by Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner for the US side. The military track showed progress — "all three sides were constructive," with agreement in principle on ceasefire monitoring mechanisms. The political track produced only dialogue. Russia's demand for full control of four occupied Ukrainian oblasts remains the central sticking point.

Iran: In a separate but back-to-back diplomatic sprint, Witkoff and Kushner also met Iranian officials in Geneva. Iran's Foreign Minister called talks "positive" and "more serious" than previous rounds in Oman. Both sides agreed to draft texts for the next round. At the same time, Trump told leaders at the inaugural "Board of Peace" meeting in Washington that military action against Iran could come "within the next 10 days" if diplomacy fails.

Gaza: Five countries, Indonesia, Morocco, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, and Albania, committed troops to an International Stabilization Force for Gaza. The plan calls for 20,000 soldiers and 12,000 Palestinian police, with the US pledging $10 billion toward reconstruction.

Markets partially reflected the tension. Oil rallied nearly 6% since Monday. Gold stayed elevated. Safe-haven demand remains a consistent theme.

This week handed investors a lot to process. 

The Supreme Court struck down Trump's tariffs in a historic 6-3 ruling, but don't mistake that for resolution. Tariffs will return through other legal channels. Uncertainty isn't going anywhere.

Behind the headlines, the real story is the rotation. Old economy sectors are up 12%. International markets are outperforming. And gold just recorded its biggest single month of ETF inflows in history at $19 billion.

The message this week was consistent across every storyline: diversification isn't optional right now. It's the strategy.

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Disclaimer: This is not financial or investment advice. Do your own research and consult a qualified financial advisor before investing.