Paula Dwyer , Columnist

The Hidden Meaning of Dow 20000

Stock-market euphoria masks the downside of some of the incoming president’s policies.

December 22, 2016 at 1:00 PM UTC

Paula Dwyer is a senior editor with the New York editing hub, focusing on daily and long-form enterprise. She was London bureau chief for Businessweek and Washington economics editor for the New York Times, and is a co-author of “Take on the Street: How to Fight for Your Financial Future.

Bring it on.
Photographer: Andrew Burton/Getty Images

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Since Donald Trump won the U.S. presidential election, the Dow Jones Industrial Average has risen almost 9 percent, flirting with closing for the first time ever at the 20,000 mark. The year-end rally is the market’s way of saying it approves of the president-elect’s ideas.

As well it should. Trump’s tax-cutting, deregulating and deficit-spending policies are tailor-made to boost corporate profits.