Solar stocks rallied Wednesday, rebounding from recent four-year lows, following Vice President Kamala Harris‘s strong showing against former President Donald Trump at their highly anticipated presidential debate on ABC.
Investors appeared buoyed by Harris's performance during the debate, which signaled potential stability for clean energy policies under a future administration, sparking renewed interest in the solar sector.
The Invesco Solar ETF TAN, a benchmark for the solar industry, surged by 3.7% by 11:05 a.m. ET, even as broader market sentiment remained bearish following a concerning August inflation report.
Harris’s Debate Performance Boosts Clean Energy Optimism
In a CNN/SSRS poll of 600 registered voters who tuned into the debate, 63% said Harris outperformed Trump, while 37% favored the former president. Prior to the debate, the same group of voters had been evenly split on their expectations of who would deliver a stronger performance.
Coco Zhang, an ESG research analyst at ING Group, noted that Harris is “likely to preserve the Biden administration's most important climate legacy, emphasizing a more efficient implementation of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).”
Harris has long been a vocal advocate for clean energy. During a 2023 speech at Coppin State University, she reiterated her administration's long-term goals: “We set an ambitious goal to cut our greenhouse gas emissions in half by 2030 and to reach net-zero emissions by 2050,” she said.
Harris’s Climate Legacy
Zhang emphasized that Harris’s campaign proposals in 2020 included an aggressive $10 trillion investment in decarbonizing the U.S. economy, the establishment of a carbon tax, and a ban on fracking. “We expect her to propose expanded clean energy spending, with a greater focus on environmental justice and affordable energy,” said Zhang.
Furthermore, a Harris-led administration would likely enforce stricter regulations on vehicles, oil, and gas industries, aligning with her vision to advance U.S. climate leadership on the global stage, particularly through continued participation in key climate summits like the United Nations Conference of the Parties.
Solar Stocks: Wednesday’s Top 7 Gainers
Below are the top gainers in the solar sector on Wednesday:
| Name | 1-day % chg |
| First Solar, Inc. FSLR | 7.98% |
| Shoals Technologies Group, Inc. SHLS | 7.80% |
| Canadian Solar Inc. CSIQ | 6.47% |
| Array Technologies, Inc. ARRY | 6.33% |
| Nextracker Inc. NXT | 5.80% |
| Sunrun Inc. RUN | 5.00% |
| SolarEdge Technologies, Inc. SEDG | 4.43% |
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