HSBC: An Anthropic IPO may sway the market more than the US midterm elections.

HSBC chief multi-asset strategist Max Kettner flagged that a potential Anthropic IPO, expected in about two weeks, could be a bigger market-moving event than the U.S. midterm elections, speaking after cutting his equity rating from overweight to neutral two weeks earlier and ahead of Thursday's U.S. stock selloff. Kettner said the market narrative around the tech sector has turned unfavorable regardless of how companies schedule capital spending, even though the fundamental case for the AI trade remains intact after this week's sharp tech selloff. He remains cautious post-election and questioned how much risk the vote actually removed, noting investors had done little to hedge election exposure. He argued a successful, on-schedule Anthropic listing is the more likely risk-clearing catalyst, making the IPO timeline the key event to watch.