(Bloomberg) -- Marc Lasry, the billionaire co—founder of Avenue Capital Group, said the uncertainty over President Donald Trump’s policies, particularly on tariffs, is stalling investors looking to take advantage of market opportunities.
Most Read from Bloomberg
-
NYC Congestion Pricing Toll Gains Support Among City Residents
-
Open Philanthropy Launches $120 Million Fund To Support YIMBY Reforms
“The problem for the markets is when they don’t know what to do,” Lasry, 65, said in an interview Friday at the Credit Opportunities Symposium at New York University. “An economy can’t survive like that. It just slows everything, and could push this economy into a recession.”
Lasry, whose firm specializes in distressed debt and credit investments, said it’s unclear whether the US is headed for a recession. The economy is strong, he said, but uncertainty over its direction will ultimately push more investors to credit markets, given that equity returns are so unclear.
The S&P 500 Index is headed for its fourth straight week of declines, bringing the benchmark index down about 4.5% for the year after two years of banner gains. At the same time, US investment-grade bond spreads widened this week to the highest levels since September.
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Barclays Plc are among banks warning that credit risk is poised to rise.
Lasry said he’s taking advantage of dislocations, buying bonds of companies in sectors that have sold off with the uncertainty but are likely to remain strong. “For us, I’d still rather buy bonds from Ford,” he said, “because I’m not worried about Ford going into bankruptcy.”
Lasry has worked with Trump before, investing in Trump Entertainment Resorts after it filed for bankruptcy in 2009. Lasry said he met with the future president during that time for lunch on a monthly basis.
“He loves chaos, and the more chaos there is, the better,” Lasry said.
When asked whether Trump is unconcerned about asset prices given the populist voters who have been drawn to him, Lasry said, “At the end of the day, I think people voted for Trump because they wanted change.”
“And in two years, we will either be really happy with the change that’s come about or we won’t.”
Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek
-
How Trump’s ‘No Tax on Tips’ Could Backfire for the Working Class
-
Germany Is Suffering an Identity Crisis 80 Years in the Making
©2025 Bloomberg L.P.