The stock market in the States has been watching closely the presidential debate. The markets seem to be favoring Mrs. Clinton for the presidential race, though Mr. Trump could win anyway. The healthcare sector was a strong winner yesterday, while the financial sector dropped a little bit. Read on to find out more about the way markets behave yesterday.
No One
Neither of the two presidential candidates walked away victorious from the last presidential debate Wednesday. Markets didn’t budge after the debates, according to a USA TODAY analysis. Investors agree that politics is a risk, no matter the candidate who wins the presidential race. Investors are worried about Trump, but they are also concerned about Hillary and a potential Democratic sweep in Congress related to leadership positions. The S&P 500 roughly declined 0.1% after the debate. Stocks filled with pro-Hillary stocks declined just 0.2% Thursday, while pro-Trump stocks didn’t budge an inch.
The data suggest that Clinton is likely to win the Oval Office. The Trump portfolio has declined 2.1% while the Hillary portfolio is truly off 1.3%. Though this method is not an exact computation of the future, it has strong evidence that Mrs. Clinton is ahead of Trump. Companies with a high consumer, industrial, and international discretionary exposure might benefit a lot from a Clinton victory. The stock market performs better when Democrats don’t have complete control of the political landscape, meaning when they control both the Oval Office and Congress. There is a short-term risk associated with a Clinton victory, which the market thinks it has not been completely erased.
The Market Dips
Wall Street just dipped yesterday. The telecom sector suffered a slump while AmEx surged. The healthcare sector rose while investors read the latest period of earnings. Telecom stocks dipped 2%, the biggest decline in this sector in the last 5 weeks. Verizon stocks lost 2.5%, as investors were concerned about the firm`s revenue decline in the last quarter. AT&T stocks declined also after the telecom giant said that a merger with Time Warner is likely to happen in the future. Time Warner shared rose 4.7% while AT&T ones fell 1.9%.
AmEx stocks rose 10.3% after the financial service firm reported strong earnings this quarter while boosting its forecast for the current fiscal year. Thursday was the best day for AmEx stocks in over 7 years. The financial statements of AmEx are going very well this year, particularly in the short term. In spite of AmEx`s earnings, the financial sector dropped 0.02%. Travelers dropped 6.1% after the insurer reported a drop in profits. The Dow lost 0.22% while the S&P 500 lost 0.14%. The important NASDAQ Composite lost 0.09% yesterday. The S&P 500 has just struggled to jump above the index`s technical resistance level at the important 100-day moving average currently at 2,142.60.
Healthcare Rose and the Euro Fell
Healthcare stocks rose 0.5% becoming the sole major sector that showed positive results. Microsoft shares rose 5.9% after the firm showed the world its quarterly results. Shares of AMD dropped 4.6% when the tech titan reported its quarterly results yesterday. Declining issues weighted more than advancing ones on the famous NYSE, while NASDAQ ratio clearly favored decliners. The dollar rose against major currencies when the president of the ECB just left the door open to producing another monetary stimulus in Europe down the road.
The Euro just fell to an important 4-month low yesterday against the strong U.S. dollar. The official currency of America rose to its 7-month high against tons of major currencies yesterday as well. The rise of the dollar pressured stock prices in America, though the U.S. currency made oil prices drop right away. Though the ECB left its monetary policy unchanged, the ECB`s president might create a further stimulus in the future for the European economy. The ECB bought 1.7 trillion in assets as part its recent buying spree. A home sales report was released in America, and the dollar rose after the markets knew about this report.
As you can see, the U.S. stock market has been watching closely what the presidential candidates are saying and doing these days. However, stocks that might be favored by these candidates did not change much after the last presidential debate. Microsoft showed its earnings, and its stock rose right away. The healthcare sector rose a little bit, while the financial sector dropped just a little yesterday as well. The Euro fell but the ECB left the door open for a future stimulus.