Poll: Donald Trump Rapidly Losing Support of U.S. Investors

Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump is rapidly losing the support of investors in his race for the White House, with just a 2 percentage point advantage over Democratic rival Hillary Clinton, according to a new poll.

Trump leads Hillary Clinton 42 percent to 40 percent as the candidate who would be better for their holdings, among voters with investments in the stock market and mutual funds, according to a Bloomberg Politics/Morning Consult poll released on Wednesday. Those results are down from a 17-point lead Trump held in the same poll in June when he led Clinton 50 points to 33.

"The dramatic shift in investor confidence away from Trump coincides with his declining poll and favorability ratings since the national convention ended a few weeks ago," Kyle Dropp, co-founder and chief executive officer at Morning Consult, said on Wednesday.

He added: "What remains to be seen, though, is if Clinton is able to surpass Trump among this elite group, as he continues to highlight his business acumen as a pillar of his campaign."

In speeches and debates, Trump likes to brag about his "phenomenal business" and his “tremendous cash flow" as proof that he would strengthen the American economy.

"I built a phenomenal business with incredible iconic assets, one of the truly great real estate businesses," said Trump at last September's GOP primary debate at the Reagan Library in California.

However, the amount of money invested may be an indicator of how individuals view the two candidates.

For those who have more than $50,000 invested, Clinton is more likely to be viewed as better for their portfolios than Trump, 46 percent to 36 percent, while investors with smaller accounts view Trump as better for their assets, 47 percent to 31 percent.

The poll also found that 32 percent would alter their investment portfolio if Trump wins in November, while 27 percent said they would if Clinton takes the White House.

On the question of who would handle an economic recession more effectively, Trump beats Clinton by just 2 percentage points, 41 percent to 39 percent.

In recent national polling, Clinton leads head-to-head match-ups against Trump, with the Democrat holding 47.3 percent support compared to 41.2 percent for the New York businessman, according to averages compiled by RealClear Politics.

Bloomberg Politics/Morning Consult conducted its latest poll of 880 investors via online interviews from Aug. 11-14. It has a 3.3 percent margin of error.

Photo credit: Gage Skidmore via Flickr Commons