It says a lot about Wall Street’s ability to compartmentalize that even as a mob of Trump loyalists stormed the Capitol in what looked like a scene from the French Revolution, stocks only dipped slightly during what was otherwise a big rally. Investors typically trade based on future expectations, not what is happening today. The bet presumably was that today’s events in the Capitol don’t presage a breakdown of society. Let’s hope that’s right.
Tech stocks, notably, missed out on the rally. Facebook, Amazon, Microsoft and Apple each fell 2%-3%, while Alphabet, which has lagged behind other tech stocks, was also down but not by as much. That performance likely reflects the possibility that a Democratic-controlled Senate—which media outlets called this afternoon—will be bad for tech. As The Information explained in this article, with Senate control Biden could change the antitrust laws in a way that would hurt big tech in particular.
