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The Dow and S&P are down on Thursday afternoon following the Supreme Court ruling on President Donald Trump’s finances. The news of the ruling was a mixed bag for the president. On the one hand, the court blocked the House of Representatives from acquiring Trump’s financial records. On the other hand, the Supreme Court left the door open for the Manhattan District Attorney’s office to seek records in connection to a suspected hush money payment.
In the late morning, following the announcement of the ruling, Trump took to Twitter. He vented frustrations that the matter wasn’t formally closed. However, it’s unlikely that lower courts reach a conclusion on the case before the November general election. This has only cast further doubt into the future for American markets.
2020 has not been a fun year for the stock market. The markets have been in constant flux since March, when the COVID-19 pandemic ravaged the US economy. The massive sell-off prompted by the virus caused an economic downturn early in the year. However, the stock market has bounced back and forth, surging as COVID cases drop off and sinking as the cases rise again.
The chaos on Wall Street mirrors similar confusion in the country at large. With the rogue element of a virulent pandemic in the population, it’s hard to predict how the year will unfold. The looming specter of the November election also has investors concerned. The incumbent Donald Trump is perceived by many as good for investors. However, his public polling numbers are down, and many pundits are predicting a Trump defeat in November.
Trump’s opponent, former vice president Joe Biden, is not perceived as being as strong for the economy. However, he has more public approval according to national polls taken throughout the months of June and July.
On the other hand, some investors believe Biden would be great for the economy due to the stability his administration could bring. Trump has been perceived by some as missing the mark in his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. Others allege Trump has fomented division in his response to recent Black Lives Matter protests. Biden, on the other hand, has struck a conciliatory tone, noting how important it is for the country to heal deep divisions.
This has caused the markets to trend upwards at times, even while Biden polls well nationally. Biden has recently touched on his desire to bring the economy back stronger following the pandemic. While the wealthiest Americans look for tax write-offs to help during the pandemic, others are still scrambling to regain employment.
