President Donald Trump has been touting the stock market’s rise during his second term, claiming that increases in 401(k) retirement plan balances have made Americans wealthier. However, a fact-check of his statement reveals that the average $30,000 gain he cited is not supported by data.

Stock Market Gains

The Standard & Poor’s 500, a metric that charts a broad selection of publicly traded stocks, shows notable gains since Trump took office on January 20, 2025. Between his second inauguration and the day of his February 2026 State of the Union address, the S&P rose by about 13%. From his second inauguration to June 23, the day of his Pennsylvania speech, the S&P rose by about 24%.

However, 401(k) balances are rising, but not as high as Trump said. Fidelity Investments data shows that between December 31, 2024, and March 31, 2026, the average increase in 401(k) balances was $9,454. No age group Fidelity studied saw an increase beyond about half of Trump’s $30,000 figure.

Expert Analysis

Experts say that the average gains might be lower than $9,454. Mark A. Johnson, an investments and portfolio management fellow at Wake Forest University’s business school, said, ‘Averages in data like this tend to get pulled up by high-balance accounts, so the median would likely be lower than the $9,000 figure.’

A $30,000 gain during this period would likely have required a balance of at least $200,000 in a 401(k), said Mark Williams, a lecturer in finance at Boston University’s Questrom School of Business. But that’s not a typical amount; about 10% to 20% of U.S. adults have an account that big.

Original reporting: 40/29 / KHBS (NW Arkansas) — read the source article.