Behaviorální reakce evropských retailových investorů na Trumpova cla z roku 2025

This thesis examines how European retail investors perceived and reacted to the 2025 U.S. tariff announcements, with a particular focus on behavioural factors such as investor confidence and the use of different information sources. The tariffs, widely discussed in financial media, represented a significant policy shock that contributed to increased uncertainty in financial markets. The analysis is based on data collected through an online survey conducted among European retail investors. The questionnaire captured investor characteristics, financial literacy, confidence levels, and behavioural responses to the tariff announcements. The data were analysed using descriptive statistics and regression techniques. The results show that, despite elevated perceived uncertainty, most retail investors did not respond by selling their assets. Instead, a substantial share of respondents reported buying assets, indicating the presence of “buy the dip” behaviour. The findings further suggest that investor confidence had only a limited impact on actual investment decisions, although it influenced how investors perceived market uncertainty and their own ability to outperform the market. In addition, the study highlights the importance of non-fundamental and social information sources, particularly social media. While these sources did not directly explain investment decisions, they were strongly associated with herding behaviour. This suggests that social information channels influence investor behaviour indirectly by shaping behavioural tendencies rather than directly determining portfolio actions. Overall, the thesis contributes to the literature by showing that retail investor reactions to policy shocks are not uniform and are shaped by a combination of psychological factors and the surrounding information environment.