US economic exceptionalism ‘absolutely’ hasn’t peaked, Vanguard CEO

US exceptionalism is a belief that has given Trump the confidence to wage war against the world. Vanguard Group Chief Executive Officer Salim Ramji disagreed that US exceptionalism is coming to an end. 

In an interview, Salim Ramji replied to whether US exceptionalism has reached its peak with a stern “absolutely not.” Ramij said that he still believes in the underlying strength of the US economy.

US Exceptionalism. pic.twitter.com/FIhUX3n0TQ

— Menthor Q (@MenthorQpro) April 22, 2025

Trump’s policies are exposing the US exceptionalism for what it really is. China, which is the biggest enemy in this war, wants to prove that America is not as great.

For more than 70 years, American exceptionalism has been based on its leadership in free trade and globalization. Its network of foreign security allies and partners, its deep capital markets, the US dollar as the world’s reserve currency, technological progress, risk-taking entrepreneurship, world-leading productivity, and its military dominance. 

However America doesn’t seem as powerful anymore.

Salim Ramji says that investors are selling the US assets

Vanguard Group oversees more than $10 trillion of assets. According to Bloomberg data, Vanguard’s exchange-traded funds have taken in almost $117 billion so far in 2025. This is the most money of any ETF provider. Out of that amount, $99 billion has been sent to Vanguard’s stock and fixed-income funds focusing on the US. 

Investors have been selling all kinds of US assets in the past few weeks. “We’re certainly seeing it in our flows,” said Ramji. “We’re seeing it in our clients’ behaviors and in our own team’s investment beliefs.” 

On Tuesday, Alain Bokobza, head of asset allocation at Societe Generale SA, said that the move out of US assets could last for years if Trump goes ahead with a multifront trade war. Bokobza first warned of weakness in US assets in September and again in February.

The S&P 500 has dropped about 10% this year. Earlier this month, it came close to being in a bear market as Trump’s back-and-forth on tariffs hurt almost every part of the stock market. This instability has shaken up the US Treasury market and the dollar. 

However, Ramji said that Trump’s trade policies won’t end the US economy’s financial power. He said, “Clients always need to be balanced […] We’ve been saying that for decades, in terms of the right mix between the US and international, the right mix between stocks and bonds.”

Magnificent Seven lost dominance depending on the US exceptionalism

In less than three months, Trump’s chaos as the returned president undermines much of US supremacy. A stable democracy, a steady rule of law, and an independent US Fed have been taken for granted.

For investors, this is a huge source of concern because belief in American exceptionalism has driven the US stock market to extremely high valuations and a premium to other exchanges worldwide. 

Bullish wagers on the magnificent seven stocks—Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Tesla—endorsed American exceptionalism in technology and innovation. 

The Magnificent Seven has made losses of up to 40%. From January, Tesla has lost 40%, Nvidia has lost 20.33%, Microsoft has lost 9.98%, Meta has lost 15.40%, Apple has lost 9.21%, Amazon has lost 22.16%, and Alphabet has lost 20.51%.

American exceptionalism is being questioned even by Goldman Sachs, which is known as the “all-American champion” of Wall Street. Goldman has also changed its mind from being bullish to bearish on the US dollar.

Huw McKay, who used to be the head economist at BHP, says that the idea of US exceptionalism lasts in geostrategic terms but not in financial markets.

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