Loading ...The highlight of today’s calendar is the first presidential debate on Tuesday, with traders pushing up overnight implied volatilities on several major currencies including the yen against the dollar in case of surprises. “Tonight’s debate will be critical, since it represents one of the last set-piece opportunities for either candidate to change the contours of the race,” Deutsche Bank wrote in a note. Needless to say, the stakes are high as the two White House candidates take the stage five weeks before the Nov. 3 election. Biden’s campaign has seized on a fresh line of attack on the eve of the debate with Trump – set for after the U.S. market close – accusing the Republican incumbent of gaming the system to avoid paying his fair share of taxes, even though he himself used tax loopholes to avoid $500,000 in taxes.
Investors continue to weigh the potential impact on the U.S. economy of either the re-election of President Donald Trump or a victory for Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden. Many see a Biden victory increasing the chances of further fiscal stimulus to counter the economic damage from the COVID-19 pandemic, judging such a scenario positive for stocks. Earlier today, Goldman published a scenario in which it said that “a Democratic sweep could have a modestly positive net impact on the trajectory of S&P 500 profits.” In other words, either a Trump or Biden win is good for stocks.