As investors eye US presidential race, JPMorgan exec says focus should be on policies

By Divya Chowdhury and Mehnaz Yasmin

(Reuters) - U.S. equity markets will remain volatile ahead of the country's November presidential election, but the policies of the two candidates should take priority over reacting to "incendiary" rhetoric from their political parties, the chief investment officer of JPMorgan Private Bank said on Tuesday.

"There is a Republican Party trade and there is a Democratic Party trade. But it's anchored on themes," Richard Madigan, the JPMorgan Private Bank CIO, told the Reuters Global Markets Forum, when asked if he sees signs in the market of the "Trump-trade."

"They have very different policy positions, but both seem to lead on a road that is going to have rising Treasury issuance and fiscal deficits," which could worsen inflation and bond markets, he said.

The Trump trade, which is based on expectations that the tax polices of Republican nominee Donald Trump would lift corporate profits while undermining the country's long-term budget health, gained ground following Democratic President Joe Biden's disastrous TV debate last month.

Wall Street recorded a strong start this week after Biden announced his withdrawal from the race and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris' candidacy for the November election on Sunday, prompting investors to shift back to mega-cap growth stocks and tempering the recent rally in small-cap stocks. In addition, U.S. government bond investors unwound some of the trades put in place on expectations of a second Trump presidency.

The S&P 500 is not poised to produce outsized returns of the scale that it already has so far this year, Madigan said. He said JPMorgan Private Bank stepped back from its "overweight" position on equity when the benchmark index hit 5,600 earlier this month.

But even more important than the outcome of the U.S. presidential race, Madigan said, "is how we see Congress is distributed. If we end up with a sweep one way or the other, they put a great deal more focus on the policy narrative, because you can actually get actions from it, it's no longer just words."

The U.S. Senate is now narrowly controlled by the Democrats, while the House of Representatives is narrowly controlled by the Republicans.

The earnings among Big Tech and the companies known as the Magnificent Seven have continued to outperform, while small-cap companies are saddled with expensive debt, depressed earnings and margins, Madigan said.

Still, he expects more volatility over the next few months due to valuations and political headlines.

"If I don't think I'm playing for higher short-term returns in the equity market and I'm getting more volatility, I can have a very clear view on default risk and on yields," Madigan said. He also said he has been "overweight" U.S. high-yield, European high-yield, and emerging market debt.

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(Reporting by Divya Chowdhury and Savio Shetty in Mumbai; Writing by Mehnaz Yasmin; Editing by Leslie Adler)