NEW YORK - US stocks surged to record highs on Wednesday following Republican Donald Trump's victory in the 2024 presidential election, which marks his return to the White House.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1,508.05 points, or 3.57 per cent, to 43,729.93. The S&P 500 added 146.28 points, or 2.53 per cent, to 5,929.04. The Nasdaq Composite Index increased 544.29 points, or 2.95 per cent, to 18,983.47, Xinhua news agency reported.
Eight of the 11 primary S&P 500 sectors ended in green, with financials and industrials leading the gainers by adding 6.16 per cent and 3.93 per cent, respectively. Meanwhile, real estate and consumer staples led the laggards by losing 2.64 per cent and 1.57 per cent, respectively.
Trump's win spurred a strong rally in so-called "Trump trades" by lifting U.S. Treasury yields sharply, driving Bitcoin to a new high above US$75,000, and pushing the dollar toward its biggest single-day gain since September 2022.
Stocks seen as favourable under Trump's administration also gained, according to Xinhua, with Trump Media & Technology Group rising 5.94 per cent and Tesla jumping almost 15 per cent as Tesla CEO Elon Musk showed support for Trump. Cryptocurrency companies, energy firms, and prison operators saw strong gains, while shares in renewable energy companies declined.
"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," said Ross Mayfield, investment strategy analyst at Baird in Louisville, Kentucky.
Goldman Sachs strategists maintained their 12-month S&P 500 index target of 6,300 points given Donald Trump's White House election victory on Wednesday.
"Robust earnings growth should drive continued equity market appreciation into next year," wrote Goldman's chief US equity strategist David Kostin and his team.
In the meantime, the Federal Reserve is anticipated to reduce the benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points in its meeting ending on Thursday, though traders have moderated expectations for additional cuts in December and next year, according to CME's FedWatch Tool.
On the corporate front, Nvidia hit a record high on Wednesday, climbing 4.07 per cent as major indexes rallied in response to Trump's presidential win.
Tesla surged 14.75 per cent on Wednesday as Wall Street analysts evaluated the potential benefits for the electric vehicle giant under Trump's presidential administration.
"TSLA and CEO Elon Musk are perhaps the biggest winners from the election result, and we believe Trump's victory will help expedite regulatory approval of the company's autonomous driving technology," wrote Garrett Nelson, vice president and senior equity analyst at CFRA Research. - BERNAMA-XINHUA