Trump's Win Sends Indices To Record Highs; Financials, Small Caps Surge, Bitcoin Tops $75,000: What's Driving Markets Wednesday?

An “everything rally” powered Wall Street on Wednesday after the 2024 election results, with Donald Trump emerging as the clear presidential winner. The Republican Party reclaimed control of the Senate, while the House of Representatives leans Republican but remains undecided.

The major U.S. equity indices, the S&P 500, Dow Jones Industrial Average, and Nasdaq 100, surged to record highs in early trading, as investor optimism grew on expectations of more favorable tax policies.

The S&P 500, Nasdaq, and Dow posted gains of 2.3%, 2.4%, and 3.3%, respectively.

However, the real standouts were small caps and bank stocks, with investors turning to domestic businesses and U.S. banks in anticipation of potential tariff protections and further financial deregulation.

The Russell 2000 jumped 5.5%, marking its largest single-day increase in two years.

Large-cap bank stocks climbed 6%, while regional banks tracked by the SPDR S&P Regional Banking ETF (NYSE:KRE) soared 13%—both seeing their biggest one-day gains since November 2020, when the first COVID-19 vaccine was announced.

Clean energy stocks were among the day's worst performers, with the Invesco Solar ETF (NYSE:TAN) plunging 11% for its steepest drop since March 2020, as ...