Home 2020 US Elections: Biden takes the lead and markets like it
FXStreet News

2020 US Elections: Biden takes the lead and markets like it

Markets cheer prospects of not a contested election as Biden is on track to win three states that could send him to the White. Split Congress risks derailing the rally, but a final call could wait for January, FXStreet’s Analyst Yohay Elam reports.

Key quotes

“Democratic candidate Joe Biden has improved his position according to the recent count. The former Vice-President is leading in narrow margins in Wisconsin, Michigan, and Nevada. The margins in these three states are below 1%, but the remaining votes are from cities or from mail-in votes – which tend to lean toward the Democrats. The race in Nevada’s neighbor Arizona is all but wrapped up. Biden leads there by 3.4% with 86% of the votes counted. Tallying up the electoral college votes from these four states brings Biden to the magic number of 270, a majority to secure a White House victory. That may happen as early as Wednesday, and betting markets are already heavily leaning toward such an outcome.” 

“The count in Pennsylvania is only at 76% and Trump is leading thereby over 10%. However, authorities still need to tally Democratic-leaning Philadelphia and mail-in ballots. The president is also leading in North Carolina by 1.4%, yet the Tar-Heel State allows ballots to arrive by November 12. Georgia holds a similar story – Trump is up by 2.2% but votes from Atlanta are yet to be fully tallied. The Peach State also features two Senate battles.”

“Markets seem to be getting comfortable with adding ‘president-elect’ as Biden’s title. Investors are eyeing a large stimulus package, and Biden would likely push for a larger one. However, without Democratic control of the Senate, he may have a hard time approving anything. Currently, the GOP seems well-placed to retain control of the Senate, yet that hinges on North Carolina and Georgia, with the latter potentially holding two run-offs in January.”

“If a Republican win of the Senate is confirmed, markets may come off their highs. Nevertheless, that may wait for a cold day in 2021. In 2020 – and more likely in a matter of hours, Biden could be confirmed as the 46th President, and investors are cheering a relatively early resolution.” 

 

FX Street

FX Street

FXStreet is the leading independent portal dedicated to the Foreign Exchange (Forex) market. It was launched in 2000 and the portal has always been proud of their unyielding commitment to provide objective and unbiased information, to enable their users to take better and more confident decisions.