GARY NG, ECONOMIST, NATIXIS, HONG KONG:
“I think this debate didn’t change things very fundamentally – of course it was a more polite debate than the previous one – but it didn’t change the market’s expectations in terms of the result, so there haven’t been large movements.
“I think in Asia people are still taking a wait and see approach, and that there will continue to be more volatility ahead of the election date.
- QUINCY KROSBY, CHIEF MARKET STRATEGIST, PRUDENTIAL FINANCIAL, NEWARK:
“Does it change the dynamic of the election? No. Obviously markets and voters will be focused on next week and whether or not there will be a presidential debate.
- AKIRA TAKEI, GLOBAL FIXED INCOME FUND MANAGER, ASSET MANAGEMENT ONE, TOKYO:
“Pence delivered his messaging better than Trump, but I want to see how Trump performs in the next debate. It may appear that Biden has the lead, but I don’t trust the opinion polls.
“The race is neck and neck. Trump will dispute the results and we won’t know right away. It could take one or two months.
“Policy will be put on hold. The U.S. economy will fall off a fiscal cliff due to a lack of support. Companies won’t be able to maintain employment.
“Equities will become very fragile. A divided U.S. government would worsen the policy outlook. People are on the sidelines now, but Treasury yields will eventually come down.”
- AYAKO SERA, MARKET STRATEGIST, SUMITOMO MITSUI TRUST BANK, TOKYO:
“Neither side landed a killer blow. Harris could have done more to criticise Trump’s handling of the coronavirus. For Pence, it was easy for him to criticise the economic polices that Democrats favour.
“If Trump really does recover from the coronavirus and is able to participate in the second presidential debate, his support could rise and the race could get close.
“For now, Biden maintains his lead. The biggest question is whether the Democrats can take the White House and both chambers of Congress. If so, there will be no policy logjam, which means higher stocks and a higher dollar.
“Anything less would lead to a lot of uncertainty, which is becoming too difficult for markets to price in.”
Reference: Reuters, NBC
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