The US presidential election

What could it mean for stock markets?

After a close-run and tightly contested US presidential election, and amid much interest globally, Donald Trump will be the next President of the United States.  

The result of the presidential race is important because what happens in the US – the world’s largest economy and stock market, comprised of many leading companies – can influence investment markets globally and, therefore, the value of people’s pension savings.

There can be volatility – or sudden, sharp movements – in stock markets in the run up to, and immediately after, important elections. In the event, on the day of the election result, US stock markets, along with some other major markets globally, initially rose on the news as the uncertainty of the close election race diminished. The UK market rose first thing, before settling back down as the day progressed. 

Even with the result now known, the new president will not be taking up position in the White House’s Oval Office until January 2025. What is likely to develop further over the coming weeks and months is the nature of Trump’s policy programme, which will have a different focus to the current Democrat President Joe Biden. The policies and pronouncements of the president-elect have the potential to influence share prices in the US and globally.  

Following through on some of the promises made during the election campaign and any other policy pronouncements that are made could influence how markets perform, for example, in areas like energy, environmental and immigration policy. There could also be an impact on areas of the economy, including economic growth, government debt, and taxation. Additionally, there could be changes in government policy that affect international trade relationships, or influence developments in the conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East. Any, or all, of these areas could impact individual share-price movements or broader financial and currency markets.  

We will continue to carefully monitor the US political situation as it unfolds, keeping a watchful eye on political and market developments. We maintain a spread of investments across different asset classes and global regions to help pension outcomes over the long term.