Yahoo Finance

• Donald Trump is expected to sign at least 100 executive orders on his first day in office.

• Investors will watch how Trump approaches tariffs, which could stir up jitters in the bond and FX markets.

• The energy, finance, and crypto sectors stand to benefit if Trump loosens policy.

With Donald Trump embarking on his second term, he could unleash a policy sea change as soon as he takes oath.

Reports suggest that at least 100 executive orders are ready for signing on Trump's first day in office, touching on areas that could grab the market's attention.

Though the holiday weekend will keep the stock and bond markets closed during the president-elect's inauguration on Monday, investors will monitor how Trump reshapes trade, regulation, and immigration policy on day one.

Detailed below are three themes they should keep an eye on, and the market moves that could result:

Tariffs

Protectionism became the cornerstone of Trump's campaign, and he has not backed down on tariff threats since winning the election.

To smooth out presumed trade imbalances, Trump has pledged a sweeping tariff strategy on all US trade, announcing plans for a universal tariff between 10% to 20%. He's also promised that duty rates on Chinese products would rise as much as 60%, and he's called for 25% import tariffs on Mexico and Canada.

For stock investors, that's created some anxiety, given side-effect risks such as a higher dollar, inflation, and slashed foreign sales of US goods. Though some equities are more exposed than others, overall, S&P 500 earnings are likely to suffer, Barclays estimated last year.

In a Friday note, Morgan Stanley suggested that executive orders will focus on "fast announcements and slow implementation," meaning that Trump is likely to set ambitious tariff goals that provide a ramp-up period for traders to adjust. On day one, investors should expect incremental tariffs hikes to kick off on China, made possible by existing presidential authorities.

However, a bigger market risk would come if Trump pursues fast implementation instead. If executive orders surprise the market in this way, the bank expects short-term Treasury yields to jump and the US dollar to appreciate, especially against the yuan, Canadian dollar, and Mexican peso.

"At present, market prices already reflect some probability of this type of more aggressive tariff outcome. If the more accelerated outcome occurs, market prices will have to more fully adjust to the unexpected reality," bank analysts wrote. "If instead the outcome falls in line with our expectations, we would expect prices to affirm our market views."