In a surprise ending to a long Presidential election, Donald J. Trump was elected the 45th President of the United States last night. As with the Brexit vote in the UK, there is a tendency for investors to jump to quick conclusions. Luckily, the fate of the US economy and financial markets rests more on longer-term fundamentals than on who occupies the White House.
That said, more surprising than Trump’s victory alone was the Republican party winning the Senate, the House of Representatives and the White House (with a likely conservative tilt to the Supreme Court) for the first time since 1928. As a result, the likelihood that Trump can move through some of his major platform issues has risen dramatically. In his speech early Wednesday morning, Trump said, “We’re going to rebuild our infrastructure . . . And we will put millions of our people to work as we rebuild it.” The mantra poised to take top billing in Mr. Trump’s first 100 days? “Borrow and build.” However, a Trump White House coupled with a GOP-led Congress promises a few shake-ups on the economic policy front.
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