The US has voted – the results are long in coming. The “red wave” may not have happened in the US midterm elections, but Republicans will most likely gain at least a majority in the House of Representatives. With a divided Congress, Joe Biden (79) and his Democrats can no longer rule. The president is likely to become a ‘lame duck’ – a lame duck.
“A blocked Congress is exactly what the US economy needs right now,” Martin Naville, 63, head of the Swiss-American Chamber of Commerce told Blick. The companies can handle both a democratic and a republican congress. “The one thing that companies really hate is uncertainty,” says Naville. “And that’s what happens when one party controls the White House and Congress.”
The past two years have proven that. “The Democrats have fueled uncertainty with their massive state program. The risk of a tax hike or the possible strengthening of unions – all that is now off the table for the next two years.”
Switzerland dependent on US economy
This is also good news for the stock markets. And thus also for the Swiss economy, for which the American market is of great importance. “America is our main export country. Many Swiss companies are here. Our country will benefit if the US economy does better,” says Naville. In any case, Switzerland need not worry. “Our country has been able to cooperate well with both parties in recent decades. Who is in power in Washington is of secondary importance to us.”
The US midterm elections are relatively insignificant for the global economy, which has been ravaged by the corona pandemic, the US trade dispute with China and the war in Ukraine. Nevertheless, Naville says, “The fact that there are no huge bills being passed in Washington for the next two years and that there is some consistency is good news for the markets.”