US open: Stocks sharply higher following Trump's re-election victory

Wall Street stocks were sharply higher at the open on Wednesday after news outlets began to call the 2024 presidential election for Donald Trump.

As of 1450 GMT, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 2.91% at 43,452.09, while the S&P 500 advanced 1.72% to 5,882.23 and the Nasdaq Composite came out the gate 1.74% firmer at 18,759.99.

The Dow opened a whopping 1,230.21 points higher on Wednesday, extending gains recorded in the previous session as America headed to the polls in what was widely considered to be a deadlocked race between former president Trump and vice president Kamala Harris.

Trump was projected to defeat his Democratic rival after winning 277 Electoral College votes, including the key swing states of Pennsylvania, North Carolina and Georgia. The Republican Party was also projected to win back the Senate, while the race for the House of Representatives was still ongoing, leaving the potential for a possible "red sweep".

Stocks linked to Trump traded higher, with shares in both Tesla, of which chief executive Elon Musk was a vocal Trump supporter, and Trump Media & Technology trading firmly in the green, as did bank stocks.

Bitcoin also surged to an all-time high of $75,000 on the back of hopes for relaxed regulation on cryptocurrencies, while the benchmark 10-year Treasury yield surged more than 16 basis points to 4.455% due to speculation that Trump's proposed tax cuts and other spending plans would spark economic growth but also widen the fiscal deficit and further accelerate inflation.

On the macro front, mortgage applications sunk 10.8% week-on-week in the seven days ended 1 November, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association, a sixth consecutive decline following a 0.1% drop in the prior week. Applications plunged 35% across October as a whole due to a 67 basis point monthly rise in benchmark interest rates.

In the corporate space, embattled drugstore retailer CVS Heatlh posted mixed Q3 results as increased medical expenses weighed on the company's bottom line.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com

Dow Jones - Risers

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $576.27 9.36%
JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $238.10 7.50%
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $411.40 7.31%
American Express Co. (AXP) $290.38 5.23%
Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $595.73 5.06%
Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $255.73 4.45%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $24.35 4.42%
Visa Inc. (V) $306.09 4.36%
3M Co. (MMM) $131.51 3.94%
International Business Machines Corporation (CDI) (IBM) $213.09 2.66%

Dow Jones - Fallers

Nike Inc. (NKE) $76.13 -2.38%
Home Depot Inc. (HD) $390.61 -2.37%
Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $63.99 -2.10%
Boeing Co. (BA) $149.46 -1.02%
Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $164.15 -0.97%
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $41.17 -0.22%
Dowdupont Inc. (DWDP) $0.00 0.00%
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $101.97 0.32%
Walmart Inc. (WMT) $84.13 0.54%
McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $299.42 0.70%

S&P 500 - Risers

Discover Financial Services (DFS) $185.87 22.40%
Capital One Financial Corp. (COF) $193.20 16.35%
Synchrony Financial (SYF) $65.70 15.63%
Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. (BFH) $60.48 14.63%
Wells Fargo & Co. (WFC) $73.39 14.55%
Nucor Corp. (NUE) $164.58 13.81%
CVS Health Corp (CVS) $61.91 11.87%
Zions Bancorporation (ZION) $57.58 10.69%
Humana Inc. (HUM) $287.00 10.13%
Lincoln National Corp. (LNC) $36.01 9.85%

S&P 500 - Fallers

International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (IFF) $90.47 -8.71%
Universal Health Services Inc. (UHS) $196.16 -7.55%
D. R. Horton Inc. (DHI) $162.07 -6.46%
AES Corp. (AES) $14.51 -6.46%
American Tower Corp (Reit) (AMT) $200.34 -6.32%
Best Buy Co. Inc. (BBY) $87.11 -6.17%
CenturyLink Inc. (LUMN) $7.17 -5.78%
PulteGroup Inc. (PHM) $125.58 -5.76%
Crown Castle International (CCI) $102.51 -5.69%
Sba Communications Corp. (SBAC) $215.36 -5.69%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

Tesla Inc (TSLA) $287.49 14.34%
CSX Corp. (CSX) $36.49 7.26%
PACCAR Inc. (PCAR) $115.81 7.16%
Intuit Inc. (INTU) $657.48 6.25%
American Airlines Group (AAL) $13.98 5.95%
Marriott International - Class A (MAR) $272.83 5.07%
DENTSPLY Sirona Inc. (XRAY) $24.56 5.01%
Charter Communications Inc. (CHTR) $401.49 5.00%
J.B. Hunt Transport Services Inc. (JBHT) $194.32 4.72%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $24.35 4.42%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers

JD.com, Inc. (JD) $37.04 -7.46%
Dollar Tree Inc (DLTR) $63.37 -5.10%
Trip.com Group Limited (TCOM) $66.08 -3.41%
Meta Platforms Inc. (META) $557.56 -2.60%
Baidu Inc. (BIDU) $89.50 -2.59%
Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (VRTX) $487.89 -2.40%
NetEase Inc. Ads (NTES) $78.43 -2.18%
Illumina Inc. (ILMN) $151.76 -2.06%
Hasbro Inc (HAS) $65.60 -2.03%
Vodafone Group Plc ADS (VOD) $9.23 -1.91%