U.S. Election

Viewsroom: What Biden bodes for money and markets

7 Nov 2020

Without a clear Senate majority, the former vice president will need to tack to the center when he occupies the White House. For Wall Street that’s a bullet dodged. For other industries, it’s a mixed bag. For multilateral institutions, it’s an improvement from Donald Trump.

Corporate America prepares for life in purple

7 Nov 2020

From finance to tech to weed to transport, companies have had plenty of time to consider what a Joe Biden presidency means. Without a clear Senate shift one way or the other, legislative gridlock appears likely. Here is what the 2020 election will mean industry by industry.

Biden win sets scene for storm before the calm

7 Nov 2020

As America’s 46th president, Joe Biden augurs predictable policymaking and decisive action on Covid-19. But he faces three big challenges: a progressive wing rejected by voters, a sore loser with months left in office and, most difficult of all, a potentially Republican Senate.

Twitter is having its cake and eating it, too

5 Nov 2020

The social network’s label on inaccurate posts by U.S. President Donald Trump might have slowed their spread. Policing lends Twitter some credibility. But misinformation can rise as uncertainty lingers. A too soft approach enables Twitter to benefit from dangerous virality.

U.S. election jam bolsters Big Tech as safe haven

4 Nov 2020

Technology stocks like Facebook and Alphabet rose more than non-tech peers after neither Donald Trump nor Joe Biden got a quick win. The sector has soared since Covid-19 hit. Likely Washington paralysis means tech giants should escape the most damaging antitrust backlash.

Powell is Fed boss any U.S. president would keep

4 Nov 2020

The central bank chair will keep monetary policy easy and could get a second term from either Donald Trump or Joe Biden. He’ll have to live with heavy spending and borrowing either way. If the Democrat wins, there is one area that will be a better fit: a focus on racial equity.

Uber victory saves its model not its valuation

4 Nov 2020

California voters approved measures that keep the ride-sharing firm from treating drivers as employees but require it to pay healthcare and other perks. Uber avoided punishing costs. But its expensive fight underscores how much the environment for the shared economy has changed.

Close-shave U.S. election may leave many losers

4 Nov 2020

With no clear winner and the count likely to drag on, a divided government is getting more likely. Markets may be jittery temporarily. Those who stood to lose from a “blue wave,” like Wall Street and Silicon Valley, will be relieved. It bodes less well for struggling Americans.

Big democratic dividend paid out in 2020 election

4 Nov 2020

Setting aside the final decision, America at least deserves an A for participation. Voters turned out in record numbers, with perhaps two-thirds of those eligible casting ballots – the most in more than a generation. The world’s first modern democracy is far from moribund.

Next U.S. president inherits a dollar in decline

4 Nov 2020

Donald Trump failed to bend the currency to his will – it firmed when he wanted it to soften, and vice versa. While Trump may buoy the dollar more than Joe Biden in the short term, the greenback’s status as the premier reserve currency will be tested whoever wins the White House.

U.S. farm aid bonanza is free market nightmare

2 Nov 2020

Farmers are receiving a record $50 billion in federal aid this year. Covid-19, trade and politics are partly to blame, but the bigger problem is too many uncompetitive farms. More handouts or price controls would further distort markets. Governments could help more by doing less.

Senate could become Wall Street’s house of horrors

30 Oct 2020

The financial industry has been treated with kid gloves under Republican rule. That will change if Democrats win the upper house. With Sherrod Brown as banking czar, the Senate could take a tough line on trading rules and mergers. Bank breakups may even be back on the agenda.

Trump vs. Biden is sideshow for Xi

30 Oct 2020

U.S. elections are closely followed in China, but the outcome of this year’s presidential ballot may matter less this time. Trump's tough act on Beijing has wrought little real damage. And while neither candidate is likely to thaw relations, the pandemic has left America weaker.

The Biden portfolio is mainly the Trump portfolio

29 Oct 2020

It might matter for mini sectors, like solar power and cannabis, who wins next week’s U.S. presidential election. But as Trump’s impact on coal shows, it’s not that predictable. Instead the Fed, stimulus, taxes and the post-Covid economy are cause for an asset-allocation rethink.

Biden win would clear multiple green roadblocks

29 Oct 2020

The Democratic nominee will rejoin the Paris agreement on emissions cuts if he wins the U.S. election. That’s good, but largely symbolic. More important are a pledge to hike clean energy spending and the scope for his administration to advance green financing and carbon pricing.

Viewsroom: What we’re expecting on election night

29 Oct 2020

If Joe Biden wins Donald Trump’s place as POTUS on Nov. 3, and the Senate turns Democrat, lots of things will change – chief among them tax and economic policy. But big tech companies and China’s Communist Party will gain no reprieve. Rob Cox, Gina Chon and John Foley discuss.

U.S. election could be Twitter’s darkest day

26 Oct 2020

The $40 bln firm, Facebook and other online platforms can’t win in the Nov. 3 ballot. Banning political ads and premature claims of victory will be controversial and messy. Breakingviews imagines Jack Dorsey proposing one radical option to Mark Zuckerberg: a temporary shutdown.

Joe Biden is private equity’s tax boogeyman

26 Oct 2020

The White House wannabe aims to eradicate the perk that mints money for buyout barons. His broader plans would add to the pain for firms like Blackstone and KKR which restructured to exploit Donald Trump's tax cuts. Shareholders, clients and staff could end up at loggerheads.

Election debate victor is big D – America’s debt

23 Oct 2020

The final televised face-off between Donald Trump and Joe Biden offered the first real side-by-side comparison of their policies. The president promised little change while his rival pledged plenty of fiscal spending. Markets will be reassured that austerity is not on the ballot.

A Trump defeat would create an even more rabid Fox

21 Oct 2020

Rupert Murdoch’s $16 bln cable group has enjoyed an unrivaled relationship with the president. Joe Biden’s victory would rob him of his biggest celebrity. Democrats could also target the channel. And Trump might go into competition. Doubling down on division may be the cure.