Industries that live by trade regulations, such as the steel industry and metal sector, stand to gain in the event of a Democrat win.

With a Democratic-controlled House, that only increases the chance of protectionist legislation, aimed mostly at Chinese manufacturing, says Larry Horwitz, senior economist at Decision Economics. He sees a boon for companies such as US Steel.

While Dems would try to derail trade liberalization with control of the House, writes Goldman Sachs' Phillips and Berwick, a Democratic majority could also increase the chance that legislation proposed by Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., that proposes a stiff tariff on imported Chinese goods could be enacted.