Saturday’s shooting at former U.S. President Donald Trump’s election rally raises his odds of winning back the White House and betting on his victory will increase, investors said.
Trump was shot in the ear during a rally in Pennsylvania in what authorities were treating as an assassination attempt. His face spattered with blood, Trump pumped his fist moments after the attack and his campaign said he was fine after the incident.
Before the shooting, markets had reacted to the prospect of a Trump presidency by pushing the dollar higher and positioning for a steeper U.S. Treasury yield curve, and those moves extended a little in Asia trade on Monday morning. Ten-year Treasury futures dipped about 13 ticks and the dollar rose on the euro and yen. U.S. stock futures inched higher.
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The first shooting of a president or major candidate since a 1981 assassination attempt on Republican President Ronald Reagan could upend the Nov. 5 rematch between Republican Trump and President Joe Biden, a Democrat, which has been tight in polls.
“The election is likely to be a landslide. This probably reduces uncertainty,” said Nick Ferres, chief investment officer at Vantage Point Asset Management told Reuters, citing polls that showed a surge in support for Reagan after the attempt on his life.
World leaders and U.S. politicians condemned the shooting, while executives, including Tesla chief Elon Musk and hedge fund manager Bill Ackman, declared their support for Trump.
