Don't take my word for it, here's what the Wall Street Journal reported yesterday about how markets seem to be preparing for a Trump win.
Some large hedge funds and money managers, sensing a potential shift in momentum, are getting behind trades that could pay out if Donald Trump beats Kamala Harris in the presidential election.
While most polling still shows a tight race, that shift has rippled across markets in recent weeks, boosting assets seen as likely to benefit from a Republican victory. For instance, private-prison operator GEO Group is up 21% in October, on pace for its best month since 2022, while bitcoin miner Riot Platforms has risen 34%.
Well-known hedge-fund manager Dan Loeb reckons a Trump victory has gotten more likely, he said this month. His $11 billion firm, Third Point, has added to positions that could benefit, by buying stocks and options, and shifted away from companies that won't...
The willingness of some investors to trade the election marks a switch from just weeks ago, when many said the race was too close to call and their focus was instead on interest rates and earnings. Once Trump's betting odds started improving, the election became more of a priority.
Next up is CNN, definitely not an organization that is interested in boosting Trump. Their story today is titled "Dow sinks sharply as Wall Street gears up for possibility of a Trump victory."
"The logic here is very simple: Candidate Trump has called for a significant increase in import tariffs to revive domestic manufacturing," Steven Ricchiuto, chief US economist at Mizuho Securities, said in a Wednesday afternoon note. "These tariffs are seen as immediately raising the price of consumer goods and, in the process, reversing the goods deflation that has helped pull inflation back towards the Fed's 2% target."
Trump's policy proposals, if enacted, are also expected to cause the government to borrow significantly more money compared to Vice President Kamala Harris' policy plans. That would make it riskier to invest in government-issued securities, leading investors to demand higher interest rates to hold US debt.
One stock that is not down this week got a special story from Reuters yesterday.
Shares of former U.S. President Donald Trump's media company surged to their highest since July on Tuesday as betting odds favored the Republican candidate in his bid for reelection to the White House.
Shares of Trump Media & Technology Group which operates the Truth Social app, jumped 9% to $34.17, and the stock has nearly tripled since sinking to an all-time low in late September.
Over at Newsweek, they see the strengthening of the dollar as another sign the markets think Trump is winning.
The U.S. Dollar hit its strongest level in months on Wednesday, the currency's index rising above 104.4 for the first time since late July.
The rally could be considered the latest example of a "Trump trade," with investors pricing in greater odds of a win by the Republican.
As well as increased confidence in the Federal Reserve cutting interest rates by 25 points at its November meeting, UBS attributed the dollar's rise to the "increasing likelihood of former US President Donald Trump securing a second term."
For the sake of fairness let's stipulate that a) the polls remain basically tied and b) all of these market and investment gurus could be wrong. Still, what you can say for certain is that the people who are putting real money into these investments actually believe that a shift is taking place. It may not appear in the polls yet, but they see an opportunity and they are seeking to capitalize on it. Again, it's not a guarantee but it's one more indication that Trump seems to have the momentum as we head toward the final week.