OPENING CALL: The Australian share market is to open higher.
The prospect of a more contentious repeat of the drawn-out fight that followed the 2000 presidential election has investors more worried about a contested outcome than an outright win by either Democratic challenger Joe Biden or President Donald Trump, analysts said.
U.S. stocks ended higher to start November and as investors eye the Tuesday election. The 10-year Treasury note yield edged down to 0.842%, from 0.858% on Friday. The WSJ Dollar Index recently was up 0.02% to 88.85. Crude oil prices ended higher as Covid-related European lockdowns fed expectations that OPEC+ may postpone output-cut curbs. Gold futures logged their second straight session of gains as Covid cases rose and the U.S. election loomed.
Australian Market
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index ended the session up 0.4% to 5951.3, clawing back some of the losses sustained last week — its worst week since April. Investors apparently shrugged off the benchmark index’s brief early dip into negative territory, with 10 of 12 sectors finishing higher.
US Market
U.S. stocks gained ground following sharp losses last week as investors ready for Tuesday’s election that will determine control of the White House and Senate as the country looks to get command over the coronavirus epidemic and turn around the stalled economy. Investors are hoping for a definitive result in the presidential race and not a prolonged contested outcome.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 rose ahead of the election.
The blue-chip index gained 423 points, or 1.6%, rebounding after its worst week since March. The Dow was up by more than 540 points in the morning, before paring gains. The S&P 500 climbed 1.2%, while the Nasdaq Composite eked out a 0.4% gain.
Commodities
Gold futures gained for a second session in a row, as Covid-19 cases rose around the world, sparking new lockdowns in Europe and stoking worries about the outlook for the U.S. economic recovery a day ahead of the election.
December gold for delivery on Comex climbed by $12.60, or 0.7%, to settle at $1,892.50 an ounce on Comex.
Oil Futures
Oil futures ended higher, paring early declines but extending a recent period of volatility as widening restrictions on economic activity in Europe threaten to hit demand for fuel.
U.S. crude futures fell as much as 6% overnight before ending the day up 2.8% at $36.81 a barrel. Brent crude, the global gauge of oil prices, rose 2.7% to $38.97 a barrel.
Forex
Major currencies were mixed against the US dollar in European and US trade. The Euro fell from highs near US$1.1654 to lows near US$1.1622 and was near US$1.1640 at the US close. The Aussie dollar rose from lows near US69.92 cents to highs near US70.57 cents and was near US70.55 cents at the US close. And the Japanese yen firmed from 104.94 yen per US dollar to JPY104.62 and was near JPY104.80 at the US close.
European Markets
European sharemarkets advanced on Monday with the panEuropean STOXX 600 index up by 1.6%. Oil and gas shares jumped 3.6%. The exporter-heavy German Dax index gained 2% as IHS Markit’s survey showed factories in Europe’s largest economy saw record growth in new orders in October. The UK FTSE index lifted 1.4% ahead of England’s one-month lockdown. UK-listed shares of Rio Tinto (+1.6%) and BHP (+1.2%) both rose.
Asian Markets
Japanese stocks closed broadly higher, as corporate results so far showed signs of a recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Nikkei Stock Average ended 1.4% higher at 23295.48.
China’s major stock benchmarks ended the session broadly higher. The Shanghai Composite Index added 0.59 point, less than 0.1%, to close at 3225.12, while the Shenzhen Composite Index added 1.2% and the ChiNext Price Index climbed 2.0%. Home-appliance makers rallied following upbeat third-quarter results.
Access 10,000+ financial instruments