United States stocks surged to record highs on Wednesday following Donald Trump’s surprising victory in the 2024 presidential election.
The win fueled optimism among investors, who anticipated pro-business policies like tax cuts, deregulation, and a president who is outspoken on economic issues, according to Reuters.
This led to significant gains across major stock indices, including the Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq Composite.
The “Trump trades” rally saw Treasury yields spike, while Bitcoin reached an all-time high above $75,000.
The U.S. dollar also experienced its largest one-day gain since September 2022.
However, the euphoria came with caution, as concerns lingered over potential challenges, such as fresh tariffs leading to higher inflation and a larger deficit.
Despite a tight race and the possibility of a delayed outcome, Trump’s win seemed to solidify expectations for an economic environment favoring corporate profits and market-friendly policies, at least in the short term.
“The fact that we got a clean result, there’s not going to be any messy contesting or court cases or whatever it might have been, is a relief to markets.
“So that’s kind of like super-charging the classic Trump trade that we saw in 2016 as well,” said Ross Mayfield, investment strategy analyst at Baird in Louisville, Kentucky.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average 1,450.11 points, or 3.43%, to 43,671.12, the S&P 500 advanced 138.27 points, or 2.39%, to 5,920.87 and the Nasdaq Composite gained 514.26 points, or 2.78%, at 18,953.43.
Financials up nearly 6%, were the best performing of the 11 major S&P 500 sectors. Banks, expected to benefit from loosening regulations under Trump, powered the gains, with the S&P 500 bank index up about 10%, its biggest daily jump in two years.
