The stock market has rendered an early verdict on the prospect of a Donald Trump victory – and it’s negative.
Dow futures had sunk 833 points, or 4.6 percent, in pre-market trading as of 9:38 p.m. Pacific time Tuesday, as unexpectedly strong Republican showings in battleground states gave the GOP contender a real shot at winning the White House.
The S&P 500 suffered a 5 percent drop, down more than 100 points, while NASDAQ slipped more than 5 percent, to 4558.
The global reaction was even less favorable. The Mexican peso tanked by more than 10% on currency exchanges, trading at an all-time low. Trump made illegal immigration a centerpiece of his White House run and vowed to make Mexico pay for a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border.
Asian indexes, meanwhile, began to absorb the U.S. election news as their Wednesday trading day began. Major indexes sank by more than 2%; Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was down by more than 3%. Trump has attacked China repeatedly over its trade and currency policies and promised better trade deals for America.
Markets can have very short memories about vote results, though.
Earlier this year, the surprise Brexit vote – which began the process of Great Britain leaving the European Union – sent the British pound to 30-year lows. But the markets have since rebounded.