 "A Wall Street sign hangs in front of a US Flag outside the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, US, September 18, 2024. File Photo/Reuters")
Wall Street’s main indices rose Tuesday (November 5) as technology and chip stocks gained, with investors bracing for potential volatility as voting began in a tightly contested US presidential election.
Shortly after the opening bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.1 per cent to 41,848.30, the S&P 500 climbed 0.4 per cent to 5,735.59, and the Nasdaq Composite Index advanced 0.6 per cent to 18,291.31, driven by a 16 per cent surge in Palantir shares following its stronger-than-expected earnings report.
Meta Platforms added 1.8 per cent, and Tesla rose 4 per cent. GlobalFoundries surged 9 per cent on a positive forecast, while Nvidia gained 2.4 per cent, lifting the chip index by 1.3 per cent.
Market mood
With polls showing a close race between Republican Donald Trump and Democrat Kamala Harris, the final outcome could take days to be confirmed. Betting markets favour Trump, which has become a focus for investors tracking potential election impacts.
The S&P 500 remains just 2 per cent below its record high, but volatility has indeed increased amid mixed tech earnings and heightened election uncertainty.
“There’s obviously been a lot of uncertainty over the election, and, you know, whether it’s uncertainty over who the next president will be or what the make-up of Congress will be,” Art Hogan from B. Riley Wealth Management told AFP.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsHowever, markets stayed calm on Election Day, with the Cboe Volatility Index, or VIX, easing to 20.72, well below levels seen during the 2020 election and last week’s two-month high.
The Trump effect
Trump’s position in polls and betting markets has influenced asset movements, with traders noting “Trump trades” including drops in the Mexican peso, swings in Trump Media and Technology Group, and rallies in industries expected to benefit from his pro-business stance, like regional banks and bitcoin.
Treasury yields have also risen as investors factor in possible inflationary effects of Trump’s policies.
With inputs from agencies