Dow Futures Jump About 1,000 Points as Wall Street Reacts to Democrats' Midterm Sweep

Stock futures surged Wednesday morning, Nov. 4, after Democrats won majorities in both the House and the Senate in the midterm elections, with Dow futures pointing to a gain of roughly 1,000 points at the opening bell.

Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were up 1,083 points, or 2.1%, as of about 8:45 a.m. ET, CNBC reported. S&P 500 futures were 1.1% higher and Nasdaq-100 futures were up 0.4%. Yahoo Finance, a little later, had Dow futures up 2.2%, S&P 500 futures up 1.2% and Nasdaq-100 futures up 0.4%.

This article is for information only and is not financial advice.

Stock futures now vs. overnight

The morning gains marked a sharp reversal from Tuesday night. As early results came in, Nasdaq-100 futures fell as much as 2.4% and S&P 500 futures dropped 1.4%, Reuters reported via USA Today. NBC News put the Nasdaq 100 futures low at a decline of as much as 2.5%.

CNBC reported Nasdaq-100 futures hit a low of 27,615.75, their lowest since July 30, before climbing more than 900 points off that level.

When futures first opened Tuesday evening, the moves were small: S&P 500 futures rose 0.2%, Nasdaq-100 futures gained 0.5% and Dow futures lost 60 points, or 0.1%, according to CNBC.

Why are Dow futures up today?

Several reports pointed to two main factors:

• A clear result. The size of the Democratic win made it immediately clear which party would control each chamber, NBC News reported, removing a source of uncertainty.
• Trump’s reaction. President Donald Trump told the New York Times he was “absolutely willing” to accept the results and told the Wall Street Journal he and Republicans would work with Democrats, CNBC reported. Reuters said futures clawed back losses after Trump accepted the results.

“Still more uncertainty looms, but one thing is certain, there will be gridlock and historically this is good for the market,” Jay Woods, chief market strategist at Freedom Capital Markets, told CNBC.

Russell 2000 futures, which track smaller companies, rose 1.7%, NBC News reported.

Nasdaq futures lag on AI worries

Tech-heavy Nasdaq futures trailed because of weakness in AI-related stocks. Investors had worried a big Democratic win could bring more restrictions on data centers nationwide, CNBC reported, and Gina Hinojosa’s win in the Texas governor’s race added to those fears because she has pledged an immediate moratorium in the state, a key data center hub.

Shares of Oracle, CoreWeave and Texas-based SpaceX were headed lower, CNBC said. Yahoo Finance reported chip stocks including Nvidia and Micron fell more than 1%, and AMD slipped before the bell after initially rising on its third-quarter earnings beat.

Wall Street strategists were split on how far the risk extends:

• Morgan Stanley strategists cited “incrementally negative AI sentiment on greater expectations for data center restrictions,” per NBC News.
• Goldman Sachs economists said the federal outcome is less likely to change the outlook for AI regulation, which would still need bipartisan support, but that Democratic wins at the state and local level could lead to short-term data center moratoria “potentially affecting about 45% of planned US data center capacity expansion.”

Which stocks were rising?

Shares tied to the broader economy led early gains, according to CNBC:

• Walmart rose 2% and Bank of America gained 1.9%.
• Health insurers and hospital operators advanced: Molina Healthcare up 6.3%, Centene up 4.7%, UnitedHealth up 1.4% and HCA Healthcare up 1.44%.
• The Invesco Solar ETF jumped 5%.

What to watch in the stock market today

Futures can shift significantly before and after the 9:30 a.m. ET open, so these premarket moves may not hold through the session. Yahoo Finance said investors will also watch for action on housing and pharmaceuticals after the election, and noted that midterms tend to shape stock performance in the near term but don’t move markets much over the long term.

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