October Wrap Up - Elections and Earnings 31 October 2024 / Published in Your Money
Like a New Zealand west coast beach there were complex and sometimes confused under currents driving markets over October. Safe haven assets like gold rallied to all-time highs, longer term interest rates rose sharply, shares drifted backwards, and the kiwi dollar fell. It was the twin impacts of a possible leadership change in the US (which has since come to fruition) and corporate earnings releases that were the most consequential influences over the month. History suggests changes of governments have a smaller medium-term effect on markets than we might think. But with a potentially less trade friendly, isolationist stance from the US, allied with fiscal expansion on top of what is an already very stretched budget this time could be different. At least market price action in October seems to suggest that.
