Stock markets rise, dollar pressured as US votes

LONDON, United Kingdom — Major stock markets rose and the dollar remained under pressure Tuesday as the United States votes in a knife-edge presidential election.

Equities in Shanghai and Hong Kong won strong support from hopes over China's economy, while European indices grew slightly as investors await interest-rate decisions from the US Federal Reserve and Bank of England on Thursday.

"A contested election result could cause volatility on the markets," noted Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell.

"Equally, a clear winner quickly after voting ends could provide some relief to investors."

A win for Republican Donald Trump is expected to boost the dollar, restoke inflation, and send Treasury yields higher owing to his pledges to slash taxes and impose tariffs on imports.

Analysts see less upheaval from a win by Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris.

"A pro-tariff Trump presidency could see the dollar strengthen amid concerns higher inflation will prompt the Fed to keep interest rates higher," predicted Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown.

"There is likely to a period of volatility particularly if the result is contested, but investors should keep their eyes on long-term horizons as historically financial markets have risen over the course of both Democratic and Republican presidencies."

Wall Street's three main indices ended in the red Monday.

Hong Kong and Shanghai each closed up by more than two percent Tuesday after data showed China's services sector expanded last month at its fastest pace since July.

The news came as traders await the end of a Chinese government meeting this week to hammer out an economic stimulus.

Officials are expected to give the go-ahead to about $140 billion in extra budget spending, mostly for indebted local governments, and a similar one-off payment for banks.

Adding to the risk-on mood were comments by Chinese Premier Li Qiang, who said he was "fully confident" that China's economy would hit its growth targets this year and indicated that there was room to do more.

Oil prices gained less sharply having surged almost three percent Monday after top producers agreed to extend output cuts through to the end of December and on worries about the Middle East crisis.

On the corporate front, striking workers at Boeing approved a contract proposal late Monday, ending more than seven weeks of stoppages that underscored discontent within the workforce of the beleaguered US aviation giant.

Shares in Vodafone gained 1.5 percent in London after UK regulators moved closer to approving the mobile phone group's multi-billion-pound proposed merger of its British operations with those of Hong Kong-based CK Hutchison.

The Competition and Markets Authority indicated that it could seal the deal between Vodafone and Three should the pair commit to investing in the UK's mobile phone infrastructure and take steps to protect consumers over pricing.

Key figures around 1030 GMT

London - FTSE 100: UP 0.3 percent at 8,204.82 points

Paris - CAC 40: UP 0.1 percent at 7,377.88

Frankfurt - DAX: UP 0.1 percent at 19,170.66

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 1.1 percent at 38,474.90 (close)

Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 2.1 percent at 21,006.97 (close)

Shanghai - Composite: UP 2.3 percent at 3,386.99 (close)

New York - Dow: DOWN 0.6 percent at 41,794.60 (close)

Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0894 from $1.0878 on Monday

Pound/dollar: UP at $1.2985 from $1.2954

Dollar/yen: UP at 152.20 yen from 152.17 yen

Euro/pound: DOWN at 83.89 from 83.94 pence

Brent North Sea Crude: UP 0.5 percent at $75.48 per barrel

West Texas Intermediate: UP 0.6 percent at $71.86 per barrel