Wall Street set for higher open as Democrats win Congress; data centre stocks slide
The prospect of fewer sharp policy changes under a divided government lifts large tech stocks
Published Wed, Nov 4, 2026 · 10:24 PM
[BENGALURU] US stocks were set for a higher open on Wednesday (Nov 4) after Democrats secured sweeping victories in the midterm elections, with investors betting a divided Washington could limit the scope for sharp policy shifts.
Democrats seized control of both the Senate and House of Representatives, scoring stunning wins in Republican strongholds for the first time in generations in a broad voter backlash against US President Donald Trump.
The prospect of fewer sweeping legislative changes under a divided government in Washington lifted large technology stocks, though concerns over tighter artificial intelligence regulation weighed on shares of data centre operators.
“Investors could conclude that Washington remains structurally constrained, limiting the prospects for dramatic shifts in the economic outlook,” said Michael Krautzberger, chief investment officer for public markets, and Liam Wash, senior US economist, at Allianz Global Investors.
Among hyperscalers, Amazon jumped 3.7 per cent, while Meta Platforms, and Alphabet were slightly higher.
At 8.31 am ET, Dow E-minis were up 904 points, or 1.74 per cent, and S&P 500 E-minis were up 66 points, or 0.87 per cent. Nasdaq 100 E-minis were up 64.5 points, or 0.23 per cent. The US dollar weakened against most currencies and yields on long-dated Treasuries moved lower.
Trump acknowledged that the US-Israeli war on Iran played a role in his party’s defeat in the elections.
Elon Musk-led SpaceX and Tesla were among the laggards, down 6.5 per cent and 4.7 per cent, respectively. Musk had spent nearly half a billion dollars backing Republican candidates, including efforts to keep Republicans in control in Texas, the home state of both companies.
AI trade in focus
The AI trade will be in focus after Democrats made gains in key data centre states including Texas and Georgia, where public opposition to the industry’s rapid expansion has been growing.
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“Democratic wins at the state and local level are likely to lead to short-term data centre moratoria, potentially affecting about 45 per cent of planned US data centre capacity expansion,” Goldman Sachs economists said in a note.
The AI trade has come under some pressure recently as investors grow wary of Big Tech’s soaring AI spending and little evidence of adequate returns. The tech-heavy Nasdaq-100 index confirmed a technical correction on Monday.
Shares of data centre operators IREN, Hut 8, Applied Digital and Core Scientific fell between 5.2 per cent and 10 per cent.
Chip stocks were modestly lower despite AMD forecasting faster-than-expected 2027 growth as its data centre sales surge. Shares of the chipmaker were flat after surging in pre-market trading.
Nvidia was down 1.2 per cent, while Marvell Technology, Intel and Micron Technology all moved lower.
Defence stocks Northrop Grumman, RTX and Lockheed Martin fell sharply, as Trump’s US$1.5 trillion budget request could now face a tougher road in Congress.
Solar and clean energy related companies moved higher, as a Democratic sweep could reinforce expectations of federal support for clean energy development to remain in place. The Invesco Solar exchange-traded fund climbed 6.4 per cent.
McDonald’s gained 2.1 per cent after the fast food chain beat quarterly profit estimates, while Block jumped 9.7 per cent after the payments company raised its full-year gross profit outlook. REUTERS
