Tax reform not needed for bull market to continue, says investing expert

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Senate Majority Leader Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) speaks as Speaker of the House Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI), Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT) and other congressional Republicans listen during a press event on tax reform September 27, 2017 at the Capitol in Washington, DC. On Wednesday, Republican leaders proposed cutting tax rates for the middle class, wealthy and businesses.

By passing a budget resolution through both GOP-controlled chambers, Republicans would trigger a legislative process known as reconciliation, during which they could pass a sweeping tax reform bill with a simple majority of 51 votes in the Senate, instead of the usual 60-vote requirement.

Republicans have said they plan to pass their tax reform package by the end of the year.

Ware said that while there are some tax cut elements baked into 2018 earnings, he doesn’t think it’s “nearly enough” as some strategists suggest.

Tax reform will add “fuel” to equity prices, but “I’m not sure that we necessarily need it to see the bull market continue. There are certainly other factors at play — low interest rates, low inflation, and … earnings growth,” he noted.

Michael Bell, global market strategist at JPMorgan Asset Management, told “Power Lunch” that his outlook for equities also remains “very positive.”

He called the risk of recession over the next 12 months low.

Bell is broadly overweight equities across the board, and thinks European equities have a chance to do “slightly better” than those in the United States.

— CNBC’s Christina Wilkie and Fred Imbert contributed to this report.

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