With the presidential election only days away, Hillary Clinton has a substantial lead over Donald Trump among affluent investors, according to a survey released Friday by Charles Schwab.
More investors see negative impacts on the economy if Trump is elected for both the long-term and short-term outlooks, but most investors of both political persuasions also say they do not plan to make any changes in their portfolios.
Schwab interviewed 240 people with at least $250,000 in investable assets for the survey, “Investor Insights: Pre-election Investor Survey,” and found most have confidence their portfolios can weather the political turmoil.
Forty-six percent of those surveyed say they plan to vote for Clinton while 28 percent say they will vote for Trump.
This could be because 59 percent foresee a major or minor negative impact on the economy for the short term and 55 percent see a long-term negative impact if Trump is elected. This compares to 37 percent for the short term and 41 percent for the long term if Clinton is elected.
Those who anticipate a positive impact on the economy also favor Clinton. Thirty-eight percent anticipate a major or minor positive short-term impact if Clinton is elected, and 39 percent see a positive impact in the long term. Twenty-nine percent see a short-term positive impact if Trump is elected and 34 percent see a positive long-term impact.
No matter which side investors fall on politically, 77 percent say they will make no changes to their portfolios before the election and 85 percent are confident their portfolios can withstand any market volatility after the election, says the survey.