US markets rise as Democrats sweep midterm elections

US markets are trending upwards after Democrats swept the midterm elections , taking control of both the House and Senate on Tuesday. The Nasdaq opened on Wednesday up 1 percent, the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 1.8 percent and the S&P 500 up 1.1 percent as markets opened at 9:30am ET (14:30GMT). Retailers that rely on imports, such as Walmart and Target, are up 1.3 percent and 3.3 percent, respectively, amid possible changes in tariff policy.

Health insurance provider UnitedHealthcare is down 2.9 percent, while CVS Health is down 12 percent. However, Cigna went up 1.6 percent. Investor sentiment was also buoyed by United States President Donald Trump’s social media post saying he would accept the results, easing political uncertainty and pressure on markets.

For companies involved in the artificial intelligence (AI) buildout, the outlook is different as the Democrats have been more critical of the sector. Oracle and Nvidia both opened the day lower, although Alphabet, Google’s parent company, is on the upswing, up 3.5 percent at the opening bell.