


NEW YORK >> The U.S. stock market, Elon Musk’s Tesla, banks and bitcoin all stormed higher Wednesday as investors made bets on what Donald Trump’s return to the White House will mean for the economy and the world. Among the losers the market sees: the renewable-energy industry and potentially anyone worried about higher inflation.
The S&P 500 rallied 2.5% for its best day in nearly two years. The Dow Jones Industrial Average surged 1,508 points, or 3.6%, while the Nasdaq composite jumped 3%. All three indexes topped records they had set in recent weeks.
The U.S. stock market has historically tended to rise regardless of which party wins the White House, with Democrats scoring bigger average gains since 1945. But Republican control could mean big shifts in the winning and losing industries underneath the surface, and investors are adding to bets built earlier on what the higher tariffs, lower tax rates and lighter regulation that Trump favors will mean.
“The markets are scrambling to figure out what happens next, but for the time being, the market is pricing in a higher growth and higher inflation outlook,” Peter Esho of Esho Capital said.
Of course, how much change Trump effects in his second term will likely depend on whether his fellow Republicans win control of Congress, and that’s still to be determined. That could leave room for snaps back in some of Wednesday’s big knee-jerk movements.
Nevertheless, the market is cleaving between rather clear winners and losers following Trump’s dramatic win. Among them:
Bank stocks, UP
Bank stocks led the market higher, in part on hopes that a stronger economy would mean more customers getting loans and paying them back with interest. They also rallied on hopes for lighter regulation from a Republican White House. JPMorgan Chase soared 11.5%, and financial stocks had the biggest gain by far among the 11 sectors that make up the S&P 500. Capital One Financial climbed 15%, and Discover Financial jumped 20.2% for some of the market’s biggest gains on speculation their pending merger will more easily get federal clearance under Trump.
Crypto, UP
Trump has pledged to make the country “the crypto capital of the planet” and create a “strategic reserve” of bitcoin. The price of bitcoin hit an all-time high above $76,480, according to CoinDesk, and was recently just under $76,100. Companies in the crypto industry also jumped, including trading platform Coinbase’s 31.1% leap.
Tesla, UP
Musk has become a close ally of Trump, exhorting the former president’s run. While Trump may end up hurting the electric-vehicle industry broadly by limiting government subsidies, analysts say Tesla could gain somewhat of an advantage by already being such a big player in the industry. Tesla revved 14.8% higher, while rival Rivian Automotive fell 8.3%.
Trump Media & Technology Group, UP
The company behind Trump’s Truth Social platform rose 5.9% after jumping nearly 35% earlier in the day. It regularly trades more on Trump’s popularity than on prospects for its profits.
Its rise came even after it filed unaudited financial documents with regulators on Tuesday saying it lost $19.2 million during the latest quarter and that its sales weakened from a year earlier.
Inflation worries, UP
Investors also see Trump’s policies likely adding to future inflation, particularly tariffs, which can add costs to U.S. households’ bills.
“Trump keeps openly telling people that he will increase tariffs not just on China but with every trade partner,” said Andrzej Skiba, head of BlueBay U.S. Fixed Income at RBC Global Asset Management. “We’re talking 10% tariffs across all global partners. This is a big deal because this could add 1% to inflation. If you add 1% to next year’s inflation numbers, we should say bye to rate cuts.”
A drop-off in immigration could also mean a crunch of available workers for employers, which could force companies to raise wages for workers faster and put more upward pressure on inflation.