US election candidates' threat to bond market

The tax and spend plans of the two main presidential candidates in the coming US elections are causing mild disquiet to some fund managers. Both George Bush and Al Gore are committed to reducing taxation and increasing government spending, with Bush showing greater emphasis on tax cuts and Gore on spending. Ken Robertson, overseas fixed income manager at Abbey National, says: "The US economy does not need additional fiscal impetus, the bond market could be unnerved and it would spell either a fresh inflation impulse or the Fed would have to be more aggressive with monetary policy. "Bush...