Investing.com – With Donald Trump set to return to the White House for a second four-year term and Republicans gaining control of at least the Senate, investors are trying to assess how the US president-elect’s policies and conservative control of Congress could impact a range of industries.
At Rosenblatt, analyst Barton Crockett offered some initial thoughts on how the outcome of the momentous November 5 election will affect these Internet media players.
Apple (NASDAQ:)Crockett noted that Trump’s plan to impose harsh tariffs of 60% or more on goods from China would be negative for the tech giant, which produces about 80% of its flagship iPhones — along with other devices — in the country.
However, they argued that “past is prologue” and that the new Trump administration would likely seek to exempt major US companies from major tariffs.
Alphabet (NASDAQ:): Trump has suggested that Google ownership should be broken up because it needs to become an American champion that can compete with huge Chinese rivals.
So a change in management could lead to a less aggressive approach to search engine monopoly concerns than the “remedies currently being marketed,” Crockett said.
TikTok: Trump has reversed the stance he took against the short-form video platform during his first term, saying he would “save TikTok.” As a result, Crockett said, Trump could use some of his first days in office in January to potentially thwart a Biden administration law that would shut down TikTok on Jan. 25 if it is not sold to new, non-Chinese owners.
However, Crockett noted uncertainty over whether Trump can use executive action to overturn the law, while pushing for Congress to overturn the law could prove difficult as the ban enjoys broad support.
Should TikTok be shut down, it would “clearly benefit” Facebook parent company Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:), Google (NASDAQ:) and short-video service Snap (NYSE:).
Live Nation Entertainment (NYSE:)Investor optimism that a Trump administration would back away from a Biden-era antitrust lawsuit has helped push the event ticket seller’s shares higher in recent months, Crockett said.
“Certainly, behavioral solutions and a deal would be consistent with Trump’s ‘make-a-deal’ ethos, and we believe a deal could be struck that Live Nation would welcome, without any a split,” Crockett wrote.
Amazon (NASDAQ:): Crockett estimated that a large portion, possibly even “a majority,” of third-party merchandise on e-commerce titan Amazon’s platform comes from China.
As a result, Trump’s 60% tariff on the country would be “disruptive” to the company, causing it to drive up prices, Crockett said. Customer demand would in turn suffer, Crockett added.
“Given the inflationary impact of such high tariffs, and likely a negative consumer reaction to substantially higher prices, we wonder whether Trump would use the threat of tariffs to negotiate a different kind of deal. But with control of Congress, Trump could do that too. be able to move forward and attempt to implement the tax rate adjustments/breaks that he has proposed to offset the rates,” Crockett said.
