The Trump administration was dealt two blows Monday evening. First, Michael Cohen, President Trump’s former lawyer, pleaded guilty to breaking campaign finance laws. Minutes later, former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort was convicted in a financial fraud trial on eight counts that included tax and bank fraud.
What effect will these verdicts have on the markets? CNBC’s Jim Cramer thinks that this new set of political turmoil could affect the markets in either direction. He uses Johnson & Johnson as an example to demonstrate his idea.
“A weakened president means a weakened dollar, which is terrific” for Johnson & Johnson, the “Mad Money” host said.
On the other hand, Cramer said that “investors who believe Trump is great for the stock market might worry” about potential information sharing between Cohen and Special Counsel Robert Mueller, which could have far reaching consequences for the president and the markets. Cramer believes that the president could pardon Cohen in order to avoid this scenario.
Why is the exact impact on the markets so unclear? “As long as the Republicans control both the House and the Senate, President Trump is practically untouchable,” the “Mad Money” host said. “Even if the Democrats take back Congress and President Trump somehow gets impeached—very unlikely—do you think a President Pence would be any less business friendly?”
Despite all of the uncertainty, Cramer believes that the market will follow a general trend. “The parts of the market that have been hurt before by tariffs and trade—some industrials and some techs—may be hurt again,” he said. “The rest of the market might even benefit from the rotation out of those stocks.”
Cramer’s bottom line? While Tuesday’s news has far-reaching political consequences, “when it comes to the many stocks like [Johnson & Johnson], I’m betting it’s a non-issue.”
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