Trump victory speech helps soothe market concerns

Conciliatory comments from US President-elect Donald Trump in the aftermath of his stunning victory over Hillary Clinton helped global stock markets and the dollar trim their hefty losses today.
Though uncertainty remains over Trump's trade, immigration and geopolitical policies, investors appeared somewhat soothed by his victory speech, in which he praised Clinton and urged Americans to "come together as one united people" after a deeply divisive campaign.
In Europe, Germany's DAX was down 0.9 per cent at 10,384 while the FTSE 100 index of leading British shares was 0.2 per cent lower at 6,832.
US stocks are expected to open lower, too, though by far less than earlier predicted. Dow futures are 1.3 per cent lower at 18,057 while the broader S&P 500 futures were down 1.5 per cent at 2,103.

"That the reaction seen thus far appears to have been much more tempered is probably due to the emollient and conciliatory nature of Trump's acceptance speech, and the fact that there was always that nagging doubt that the pollsters may well be wrong," said Michael Hewson, chief markets analyst at CMC Markets.
As Trump gained the lead in the electoral vote count, investors became increasingly uneasy and share prices tumbled in Asia, which were open during the election results. Dow futures were down 4 per cent at one point. However, by the time Trump was confirmed the winner and made his speech, financial markets had steadied.

The dollar also recouped some ground, while assets that many investors search out at times of uncertainty, such as gold and the Swiss franc, came off earlier highs. An ounce of gold was up 1.9 per cent at $1,299 while the dollar was only 0.1 per cent lower at 0.9764 Swiss franc.

One currency that remains heavily sold is the Mexican peso. It was down 8.2 per cent at 45 US cents as the prospect of a wall along the United States' southern border, a key campaigning point for Trump, has come one step closer to reality. Trump has insisted that Mexico will pay for the wall.

Also potentially impacting the peso is Trump's threat to rip up trade deals like the North American Free Trade Agreement, a key plank in Mexico's economic strategy and growth.
"If Trump is able to follow through with these suggestions, Mexican activity will suffer greatly," said Jane Foley, senior foreign exchange strategist at Rabobank International.
Under the US constitution, Trump doesn't formally take the reins of power until January but he will begin the transition to his presidency almost immediately.