CNBC's Jim Cramer says stock-market investors put more importance on stronger economic growth than President Donald Trump's legal troubles.
Former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort was found guilty of tax and bank fraud charges on Tuesday evening, while Trump’s former personal lawyer Michael Cohen pleaded guilty to a range of charges and said he acted at the direction of Trump.
Cramer recently told CNBC he is concerned about whether Chinese President Xi may try to press any perceived Trump weakness in trade talks.
Meanwhile, the U.S. is seeing the "strongest consumer ever," Cramer said on CNBC, praising Target CEO Brian Cornell for pointing that out.
"The president, what does he have to do with the price-to-earnings ratio of Johnson & Johnson" or any other company? Cramer said.
"I most fear President Xi saying, 'You know what, I am president for life, and this guy [Trump] may not even be president for much longer,'" Cramer said.
He did explain to expect some bouts of volatility in the market, U.S. stocks were mixed on Wednesday, with the Nasdaq gaining on the strength of tech stocks while the S&P 500 was little changed as it marked its longest bull-market run.
Cramer said investors will be "selling until they see the midterms" no matter what.
The legal woes of Trump’s two former advisers contributed to investors’ caution, while the release of the Federal Open Market Committee’s minutes from its last policy meeting had only a fleeting impact on Wall Street’s major indexes.
U.S. central bankers discussed raising interest rates soon to counter excessive economic strength but also examined how global trade disputes could batter businesses and households.
Investors are considering whether the twin setback will hurt the Republican Party’s election prospects and widen a criminal probe that has overshadowed Trump’s presidency, Reuters explained.
“There was quite a lot of news that was negative for Trump yesterday that introduced uncertainty into the market,” said Robert Phipps, director at Per Stirling Capital Management in Austin, Texas.
Material from Reuters were used in this report.
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