Q3 2025 Trader Client Sentiment Report
A quarterly study exploring the outlooks, expectations, trading patterns and points of view of clients at Charles Schwab–who actively trade equities or trade options, futures, or forex.
Key findings
- Political concerns still dominate: Traders are most concerned with the political landscape in Washington D.C. followed by geopolitical/global macroeconomic issues and uncertainty due to market volatility.
- Recession concerns have eased: Traders’ recession expectations dropped by about half quarter-over-quarter (63% in Q2 2025 vs. 31% in Q3 2025).
- Intention to ‘buy the dip’: Should markets dip in Q3, 80% of traders report they’ll take it as a buying opportunity.
- Tariffs spark concern and opportunity: Just over half (52%) of traders feel tariffs will have a negative impact on the U.S. economy and 55% report having traded off of tariff policy developments in recent months.
About the survey
The Charles Schwab Trader Sentiment Survey is a quarterly study exploring the outlooks, expectations, trading patterns and points of view of clients at Charles Schwab–who actively trade equities or trade options, futures, or forex. The study included 1,323 Active Trader clients at Charles Schwab and was fielded from July 8 – 14, 2025.
Media Contact: Margaret Farrell
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