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Major stock markets mostly rose and the dollar remained under pressure Tuesday as Americans cast votes in a knife-edge presidential election.Wall Street’s main indexes, which had fallen the previous day, rebounded after voting began in the world’s biggest economy.In Europe, London dipped 0.1 percent as investors await an interest-rate decision by the Bank of England on Thursday while Paris and Frankfurt ended the day with modest gains.Equities in Shanghai and Hong Kong won strong support from hopes over China’s economy.The dollar weakened against the euro, the British pound and the yen.Forecasters have for weeks pointed to a neck-and-neck contest between Vice President Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump.A win for Trump is expected to stoke inflation and send Treasury yields higher owing to his pledges to slash taxes and impose tariffs on imports, which could push up the dollar.Analysts see less upheaval from a win by Democratic Vice President 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 be 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,” he added.Fawad Razaqzada, analyst at City Index and Forex.com, said that “traders are not committing to any particular direction across financial markets, and you can’t really blame them.”Given that the race appears to be a toss-up “this makes it extremely difficult to make a strong case for the direction of the dollar or stocks this week,” he added.Investors are also awaiting another US Federal Reserve rate cut on Thursday as inflation cools.- Asia up -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.Chinese Premier Li Qiang, meanwhile, 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 rose, but less sharply, having surged almost three percent Monday on worries about the Middle East crisis and as top producers agreed to extend output cuts through to the end of December.- Key figures around 2130 GMT -New York – Dow: UP 1.0 percent at 42,221.88 (close)New York – S&P 500: UP 1.2 percent at 5,782.76 (close)New York – Nasdaq: UP 1.4 percent at 18,439.17 (close)London – FTSE 100: DOWN 0.1 percent at 8,172.39 (close)Paris – CAC 40: UP 0.5 percent at 7,407.15 (close)Frankfurt – DAX: UP 0.6 percent at 19,256.27 (close)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)Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0930 from $1.0878 on MondayPound/dollar: UP at $1.3035 from $1.2957Dollar/yen: DOWN at 151.60 yen from 152.13 yenEuro/pound: DOWN at 83.82 from 83.96 penceBrent North Sea Crude: UP 0.6 percent at $75.53 per barrelWest Texas Intermediate: UP 0.7 percent at $71.99 per barrelburs-jmb/des

Major stock markets mostly rose and the dollar remained under pressure Tuesday as Americans cast votes in a knife-edge presidential election.Wall Street’s main indexes, which had fallen the previous day, rebounded in early deals after voting began in the world’s biggest economy.In Europe, London fell as investors await an interest-rate decision by the Bank of England on Thursday while Paris and Frankfurt were slightly up in afternoon deals.Equities in Shanghai and Hong Kong won strong support from hopes over China’s economy.The dollar weakened against the euro, the British pound and the yen.”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 restoke inflation and send Treasury yields higher owing to his pledges to slash taxes and impose tariffs on imports, which could support the dollar.Analysts see less upheaval from a win by Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris.Investors are also awaiting another US Federal Reserve rate cut on Thursday as inflation cools.”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 be 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.”Fawad Razaqzada, analyst at City Index and Forex.com, said markets had priced in a Trump win until the start of this week.”While that could still be the case, Harris has closed the gap to essentially make it a coin flip between the two candidates,” he said.”As things stand it looks like it could be a photo finish. This makes it extremely difficult to make a strong case for the direction of the dollar or stocks this week,” Razaqzada said.- Asia up -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.Chinese Premier Li Qiang, meanwhile, 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, Boeing shares fell slightly even though striking workers approved a contract proposal late Monday, ending more than seven weeks of stoppages that underscored discontent in the workforce of the beleaguered US aviation giant.- Key figures around 1440 GMT -New York – Dow: UP 0.2 percent at 41,886.63 pointsNew York – S&P 500: UP 0.5 percent at 5,742.69 New York – Nasdaq: UP 0.8 percent at 18,319.57London – FTSE 100: DOWN 0.3 percent at 8,163.47Paris – CAC 40: UP 0.3 percent at 7,390.45Frankfurt – DAX: UP 0.2 percent at 19,193.13Tokyo – 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)Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0910 from $1.0878 on MondayPound/dollar: UP at $1.3020 from $1.2954Dollar/yen: DOWN at 151.84 yen from 152.17 yenEuro/pound: DOWN at 83.80 from 83.94 penceBrent North Sea Crude: UP 0.9 percent at $75.77 per barrelWest Texas Intermediate: UP 1.1 percent at $72.23 per barrel

US tech giant Meta illegally harvested sensitive data including on sexual orientation from nearly a million South Korean Facebook users and shared it with advertisers, Seoul’s data watchdog said Tuesday.The firm, which also owns Instagram, violated South Korean laws prohibiting the use of information on political opinions, religious beliefs and people’s sex life unless the individual provides explicit consent, Seoul’s Personal Information Protection Commission said.The tech giant collected sensitive information from around 980,000 domestic users in South Korea through their Facebook profiles, including details about their religious beliefs and whether they are in a same-sex relationship.Meta “analysed user behaviour data, including pages liked and ads clicked on Facebook”, to create and implement targeted advertising related to “sensitive themes” such as transgender issues, homosexuality and North Korean defectors, officials said.The watchdog said it had confirmed that such information was provided to advertisers by Meta, with around 4,000 advertisers using it.The commission said Tuesday it had decided to fine Meta 21.6 billion won ($15.6 million).Meta told AFP that it would “carefully review the decision document once we receive it.”The South Korean watchdog said it had “also ordered the company to establish legal grounds for processing sensitive information, implement safety measures, and respond diligently to users’ requests for access to their personal data”.The decision is “significant in that they ensure that foreign operators providing global services must comply with the obligations set forth in (South Korea’s) Protection Act regarding the processing of sensitive information”.- LGBTQ market? -Experts said that Meta’s violation of personal information laws could reflect a growing demand to better identify and target LGBTQ-related markets.Despite the existing legal barriers, “LGBT partnerships are increasingly common in South Korea, and they are also increasingly accepted by the society,” Vladimir Tikhonov, professor of Korea studies at the University of Oslo, told AFP.”It is a niche market, but it grows fast,” he added.Same-sex marriage is not legally recognised in the South, and activists have long emphasised the need for legislation outlawing discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.Around a quarter of South Korea’s population identifies as Christian and there has been vocal opposition to any recognition of same-sex marriage from such groups, purportedly on religious grounds.But the LGBTQ community in the country scored a legal victory in July when a court ruled that it was discriminatory for state health insurers to treat same-sex couples differently from heterosexual common law couples, who are allowed joint coverage.Advocates say the Supreme Court’s verdict could eventually pave the way for a law allowing same-sex unions in the country.

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 pointsParis – CAC 40: UP 0.1 percent at 7,377.88Frankfurt – DAX: UP 0.1 percent at 19,170.66Tokyo – 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 MondayPound/dollar: UP at $1.2985 from $1.2954Dollar/yen: UP at 152.20 yen from 152.17 yenEuro/pound: DOWN at 83.89 from 83.94 penceBrent North Sea Crude: UP 0.5 percent at $75.48 per barrelWest Texas Intermediate: UP 0.6 percent at $71.86 per barrel

Chinese Premier Li Qiang said Tuesday he was “fully confident” the country would hit its economic goals this year, lauding recent stimulus measures and suggesting there was still room for more.Beijing has set a growth target of around five percent for 2024, but in the third quarter the country saw its slowest expansion in a year and a half.The government has announced a raft of measures aimed at boosting activity, including rate cuts and the easing of some home purchasing restrictions, but analysts have bemoaned the lack of detail so far.  Observers hope a specific figure for the stimulus could emerge from this week’s meeting of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (NPC), the top body of China’s rubber stamp parliament, in Beijing.Speaking Tuesday at the opening ceremony of a major international trade show in Shanghai, Li said: “We are fully confident in the realisation of this year’s goals and the development of China’s economy in the future.”The premier, who has official responsibility for economic policy, suggested that authorities still had room to manoeuvre when it came to further measures.”There is a relatively large space for financial and monetary policies, and the policy tools are even more abundant,” he said.An initial market rally when the measures were announced has since fizzled out, with investors put out by the lack of detail.But there have been glimmers of hope for the economy recently, including China’s manufacturing output expanding for the first time in six months in October.Activity in China’s services sector also accelerated in October, according to an independent index published Tuesday.- ‘China is very, very open’ -On Monday lawmakers on the NPC standing committee meeting reviewed a bill that would raise local government debt ceilings to replace existing hidden debts, according to state news agency Xinhua. Another challenge facing the economy is escalating trade rows with several key trading partners — most notably the European Union and the United States. Speaking at the China International Import Expo (CIIE), an annual showcase trade show in financial hub Shanghai, Li insisted China was committed to opening up further to foreign investment.China has railed against tariffs on its electric vehicles imposed by the EU and Washington among others.Beijing last month announced provisional tariffs on EU brandy imports, and has initiated anti-dumping probes into some EU pork and dairy imports.French trade minister Sophie Primas, who is attending the CIIE, told AFP on Monday that the window for negotiation over those tariffs remained “open” but warned Paris could take all possible measures in response.Asked at that expo on Tuesday whether she thought China was opening up more to foreign companies, she replied that in general, “China is very, very open to all countries, especially France”.”There are obviously a few disputes at the moment over certain industries… For us, in France, the cognac industry has been hit hard,” she added. “But the relations we’ve had here suggest that we’ll be able to continue to negotiate and we’ll be able to continue to have these relations, which are long-standing.”

Asian markets mostly rose Tuesday, a day before results from the US presidential election rolled in, with opinion polls showing a knife-edge vote, while Chinese equities were boosted by hopes over the country’s economy.Uncertainty about the outcome and worries that the winner might not be known for days has led to warnings that investors could be in for a period of volatility.Eyes will also be on the Federal Reserve’s policy decision on Thursday, with expectations for another cut, while the post-meeting statement from bank boss Jerome Powell will be pored over for an idea about its plans for 2025.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.”Some view a second Trump term as a potential ticket to higher deficits and a dash of inflation, courtesy of his tax-and-tariff playbook,” said Stephen Innes at STI Asset Management.”A Trump victory with a Republican Congress would likely mean a green light for these pro-growth, deficit-stirring policies.”With Harris and a divided Congress, radical Democratic policies would face a wall, keeping fiscal volatility in check compared to Trump’s economic flamethrower.”He added that a Trump win and Republican sweep of both houses of Congress could cause headaches for Powell as he continues his battle to bring inflation to heel.National Australia Bank’s head of market economics, Tapas Strickland, said that after Thursday’s decision: “Harder discussions come in December and beyond, especially on the pace of potential cuts, where rates are likely to go, and any policy impacts by the next president and Congress.”Wall Street’s three main indexes ended in the red, and Asian traders mostly managed to build on Monday’s performance with markets swinging in and out of positive territory.Hong Kong and Shanghai each climbed more than two percent 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 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” the economy would hit its growth targets this year and indicated that there was room to do more. Tokyo rallied more than one percent as investors returned from an extended weekend, while Singapore, Wellington, Taipei, Mumbai, Bangkok, Jakarta and Manila also advanced. Sydney and Seoul edged down.London, Paris and Frankfurt all dipped at the open.Oil prices inched up after surging 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.- Key figures around 0810 GMT -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)London – FTSE 100: DOWN 0.1 percent at 8,179.18Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0888 from $1.0878 on MondayPound/dollar: UP at $1.2976 from $1.2954Dollar/yen: UP at 152.25 yen from 152.17 yenEuro/pound: DOWN at 83.91 from 83.94 penceWest Texas Intermediate: UP 0.2 percent at $71.59 per barrelBrent North Sea Crude: UP 0.1 percent at $75.18 per barrelNew York – Dow: DOWN 0.6 percent at 41,794.60 (close)

Nintendo downgraded its annual sales forecast on Tuesday as net profit plunged 60 percent year-on-year in the first half, with fans awaiting the announcement of a new console.Last year, the Japanese video game giant scored with the smash-hit “Super Mario Bros” film and the release of “Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom”, the fastest-selling game in nearly four decades of the Zelda franchise.But times are now tighter for the company, which has promised news on the successor to its popular but ageing Switch console by the end of March 2025.”Unit sales of both hardware and software were extremely high for the first half of the previous fiscal year,” Nintendo said, adding that the Mario movie had “energised our dedicated video game platform business”.”There were no such special factors in the first half of this fiscal year, and with Nintendo Switch now in its eighth year since launch, unit sales of both hardware and software decreased significantly,” it added.In the April-September period, Nintendo logged net profit of 108.7 billion yen ($710 million), down 60 percent from the same period a year earlier.The Kyoto-based company kept unchanged its downbeat full-year net profit forecast of 300 billion yen — a drop of nearly 40 percent from the 490 billion yen in 2023-24.It now expects sales of 1.28 trillion yen, down from the previous estimate of 1.35 trillion yen, and also issued a less optimistic operating profit forecast.The Switch, both a handheld and TV-compatible device, became a must-have distraction among all age groups during the Covid pandemic, but buzz around the console is fading.”Unit sales for the entire Nintendo Switch family of systems decreased 31 percent year-on-year to 4.72 million units” in the first half, Nintendo said on Tuesday.Software unit sales were down nearly 28 percent on-year, it added.For now “the company is focused on increasing sales of the current Switch console in 2024, so a lot of news flow about the next console may happen in mid-January 2025 and later”, Takeshi Koyama of Mizuho Securities said ahead of the results.For several years, Nintendo has been pursuing a strategy to reach a wider audience, analysts say.The company last month opened its first museum in a renovated factory in Kyoto, showcasing its long history since starting life in 1889 producing playing cards.

Chinese Premier Li Qiang said Tuesday he was “fully confident” the country would hit its economic goals this year, lauding recent stimulus measures and suggesting there was still room for more.China’s leaders have set an annual growth target of around five percent, but in the third quarter the country saw its slowest expansion in a year and a half as its post-pandemic recovery remained stubbornly uneven.The government has announced a raft of measures aimed at boosting activity, including rate cuts and the easing of some home purchasing restrictions, but analysts have criticised the lack of detail so far.  Observers hope a specific figure for the stimulus could emerge from this week’s meeting of the Standing Committee of National People’s Congress, the top body of China’s rubber stamp parliament. “We are fully confident in the realisation of this year’s goals and the development of China’s economy in the future,” Li said Tuesday at the opening ceremony of a major international trade show in Shanghai.Referring to the recent package of measures, Li, who has official responsibility for economic policy, said they had been “well-received”.”China’s major economic indicators have rebounded across the board, market confidence has increased significantly, social expectations have improved significantly, and there have been many positive changes in economic operation,” he said. An initial market rally when the measures were announced has since fizzled out, with investors put out by the lack of detail.But there have been glimmers of hope for the economy recently, including China’s manufacturing output expanding for the first time in six months in October.On Tuesday Li suggested that officials still had room to manouevre when it came to further measures. “In the face of downward economic pressure, we have the requirements for increasing counter-cyclical adjustments,” he said. “There is a relatively large space for financial and monetary policies, and the policy tools are even more abundant,” he added.

Asian markets fluctuated Tuesday as traders jockeyed for position a day before results from the US presidential election rolled in, with opinion polls showing the vote on a knife-edge as the two candidates wrapped up their campaigns.Uncertainty about the outcome and worries that the winner might not be known for days has led to warnings that investors could be in for a period of volatility.Eyes will also be on the Federal Reserve’s policy decision on Thursday, with expectations for another cut, while the post-meeting statement from bank boss Jerome Powell will be pored over for an idea about its plans for 2025.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.But analysts see less upheaval from a win by Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris.”Some view a second Trump term as a potential ticket to higher deficits and a dash of inflation, courtesy of his tax-and-tariff playbook,” said Stephen Innes at STI Asset Management.”A Trump victory with a Republican Congress would likely mean a green light for these pro-growth, deficit-stirring policies.”With Harris and a divided Congress, radical Democratic policies would face a wall, keeping fiscal volatility in check compared to Trump’s economic flamethrower.”He added that a Trump win and Republican sweep of both houses of Congress could cause headaches for Powell as he continues his battle to bring inflation to heel.National Australia Bank’s head of market economics, Tapas Strickland, said that after Thursday’s decision: “Harder discussions come in December and beyond, especially on the pace of potential cuts, where rates are likely to go, and any policy impacts by the next president and Congress.”Wall Street’s three main indexes ended in the red, and Asian traders battled to build on their broadly positive Monday performance, with markets swinging in and out of positive territory.Hong Kong and Shanghai rose as traders await the end of a 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.Tokyo rallied more than one percent as investors returned from an extended weekend, while Wellington, Taipei, Jakarta and Manila also advanced. Sydney, Singapore and Seoul edged down.Oil prices inched down after surging 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.- Key figures around 0230 GMT -Tokyo – Nikkei 225: UP 1.1 percent at 38,474.66 (break)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: UP 0.3 percent at 20,636.74Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.4 percent at 3,322.02Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.0875 from $1.0878 on MondayPound/dollar: UP at $1.2957 from $1.2954Dollar/yen: UP at 152.33 yen from 152.17 yenEuro/pound: UP at 83.96 from 83.94 penceWest Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.1 percent at $71.42 per barrelBrent North Sea Crude: DOWN 0.1 percent at $75.02 per barrelNew York – Dow: DOWN 0.6 percent at 41,794.60 (close)London – FTSE 100: UP 0.1 percent at 8,184.24 (close)

European and US stock markets dipped while the dollar slid Monday as investors steel themselves for a coin-toss US presidential election, an interest rate decision and expected Chinese stimulus measures.Oil prices rallied more than two percent after eight members of the OPEC+ group of producers said Sunday they would extend supply cuts until the end of next month.They had been delaying output hikes on worries about slowing demand in China and the United States.While Asian markets gained, tracking a positive lead from Wall Street ahead of the weekend, European markets were mostly lower and US markets wobbled.”Traders are gearing up for perhaps the most important week of the year,” said Joshua Mahony, chief market analyst at Scope Markets. Investors are looking for any hint of an advantage between the US presidential candidates as Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris and her Republican rival, ex-president Donald Trump, remain neck and neck in opinion polls ahead of Tuesday’s poll.The dollar retreated against its main rivals Monday as a fresh survey in Iowa — which Trump won in 2016 and 2020 — showed Harris leading over the weekend.A victory for Trump is seen as being positive for the dollar and pushing up Treasury yields owing to his pledges to cut taxes and impose hefty tariffs on imports.Elections for the Senate and House of Representatives are also being closely watched amid speculation the Republicans could take control of both.”If the Republicans sweep all three, that will open the door to significant fiscal changes, which is negative for bondholders and could spell higher yields until the dust settles,” said Peter Esho, founder of Esho Capital.The election comes before the Federal Reserve is due to make its latest policy decision this week, with investors expecting a 25-basis-point reduction after a bumper 50-point cut at its last gathering.With the candidates running neck-in-neck, little can be said with certainty.The vote is of particular interest to China, where officials in Beijing are meeting this week to hammer out an economic stimulus.Economists expect lawmakers to approve around one trillion yuan ($140 billion) in extra budget spending, mostly for indebted local governments, and a one-off one-trillion yuan payment for banks.Hong Kong made gains and Shanghai was up more than one percent at the close. Tokyo was shut for a holiday. In European trading, both Paris and Frankfurt ended the day lower but London bucked the trend to edge higher, with the Bank of England widely expected to cut its main interest rate on Thursday after inflation dropped below its target rate.Oil prices also firmed after Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned at the weekend that Israel and the United States “will definitely receive a tooth-breaking response” to Israeli attacks on October 26.That strike was in response to an October 1 barrage of about 200 missiles against its rival.- Key figures around 2020 GMT -New York – Dow: DOWN 0.6 percent at 41,794.60 (close)New York – S&P 500: DOWN 0.3 percent at 5,712.69 (close)New York – Nasdaq Composite: DOWN 0.3 percent at 18,179.98 (close)London – FTSE 100: UP 0.1 percent at 8,184.24 (close)Paris – CAC 40: DOWN 0.5 percent at 7,371.71 (close)Frankfurt – DAX: DOWN 0.6 percent at 19,147.85 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: UP 0.3 percent at 20,567.52 (close)Shanghai – Composite: UP 1.2 percent at 3,310.21 (close)Tokyo – Nikkei 225: Closed for a holidayEuro/dollar: UP at $1.0878 from $1.0834 on FridayPound/dollar: UP at $1.2954 from $1.2924Dollar/yen: DOWN at 152.17 yen from 153.01 yenEuro/pound: UP at 83.94 from 83.86 penceBrent North Sea Crude: UP 2.7 percent at $75.08 per barrelWest Texas Intermediate: UP 2.9 percent at $71.47 per barrelburs-jmb/bfm