New York (AFP)

The New York Stock Exchange soared on Wednesday shortly after opening as the US presidential election remained undecided but the possibility of a full-scale Democrats victory in Congress receded.

Its flagship index, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, rose at around 3.35 p.m. GMT 1.8% to 27,971.56 points after climbing to 2.4%.

The Nasdaq, an index with strong technological coloring on Wall Street, soared 3.7% to 11,572.65 points shortly after taking up 4.1%.

The S&P 500, which includes the 500 largest companies on Wall Street, took 2.5% to 3,453.35 points.

After heavy losses last week, the indices were already well back Monday and Tuesday as the ballot between Republican Donald Trump and Democrat Joe Biden promised to be increasingly tight.

The Americans did not know the name of their next president on Wednesday morning after a record participation vote, the counting of which continued in the majority of key states.

But Democrats saw their chances of winning a majority in the US Senate greatly reduced on Wednesday.

However, "the market had clearly positioned itself for Biden by selling shares in the technology sector and by buying those which would have benefited from a major plan to support the economy," notes Gregori Volokhine of Meeschaert Financial Services.

"The scales are returning to balance now that Biden's victory is much more random," he said.

If Donald Trump wins, the risk of confinement as in Europe is much lower, which bodes well for the economy.

- Apple and Google at the party -

Above all, the risk of an increase in taxes on earnings on the stock market, proposed by the Democratic candidate, is receding.

"So why not buy companies like Apple (+ 3.7%), Google (+ 6.2%) or Microsoft (+ 4.4%)" whose stock market surge has brought "phenomenal" gains to their shareholders , notes Mr. Volokhine.

The tech sector was also pulled up by the leap in Uber (+ 13.6%) and Lyft (+ 12.2%) chauffeur-driven car reservation platforms (VTC) after a key referendum in California preserving their economic model .

Moreover, if the Senate remains in the hands of the Republicans, the possibility of a new major aid plan for the economy is reduced, lowering the risk of inflation and therefore the interest rates.

The American Central Bank (Fed), anxious to support growth if politicians do not reach a compromise on budgetary measures, is also not expected to raise its key rates anytime soon.

On the bond market, the yield on US 10-year debt fell to 0.77% from 0.90% the day before closing.

In addition, the risk of seeing the Democrats trying to dismantle a company like Facebook or Alphabet, the parent company of Google, is reduced, notes Quincy Krosby of Prudential.

Investors are not overly worried, she said, that the results of the presidential election are slow in coming as long as the process is respected.

“The question now is what Donald Trump will do if Joe Biden wins,” she says.

"The market does not want the courts to be involved again because then it could become complicated," she said.

© 2020 AFP