Global Markets Rally On Odds Of Biden Win, Divided US Congress

Shares across the globe are rising sharply as the U.S. election results so far point to the odds of Democratic nominee Joe Biden winning the presidency and the U.S congress remaining divided among Republicans and Democrats.

Major U.S. futures are rising at press time early Thursday, with the Dow gaining 1.02% and the S&P 500 advancing 1.32%. WTI crude oil futures have fallen 0.84% to $38.82, while the 10-Year Treasury yields have fallen further from Wednesday, dropping 4 basis points to 0.728%.

Asia: Japan's Nikkei 225 benchmark gained 1.73% on Thursday, on top of a 1.72% gain on Wednesday. On the economic data front, October's Services PMI data improved to 47.7, beating a consensus of 46.9. Household spending and unemployment numbers will be released late Thursday. Gaming company Nintendo Co Ltd NTDOY reported solid earnings and raised the annual 2021 sales forecast for Switch console by 26% to 24 million units.

China's Shanghai Composite benchmark closed 1.30% higher, as Joe Biden is seen as less aggressive in his approach, benefitting China-U.S. relations.

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 had advanced 1.28% on Thursday's close, after the nation's trade balance surplus improved to AUD 5.63 billion in September. Investors will be watching the monetary policy statement from the Reserve Bank of Australia late Thursday.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng soared 3.10% on Thursday, while India's Nifty 50 index was trading higher 1.52% in the afternoon's trade, and South Korea's KOSPI surged 2.40%.

Europe: Euro Stoxx 50 was up 1.15% at the open, after clocking more than 2% gains each in the last three days. The Producer Price Index for October grew 0.3% month-over-month but fell 2.4% year-over-year. The Composite and Services PMI for October beat consensus. Europe has a busy economic calendar on Thursday.

London's FTSE 100 index is trading marginally higher by 0.05% at press time, after gaining for three consecutive days. Bank of England kept the interest rates unchanged at 0.10% and projected quantitative easing for November at £875 billion.

Germany's DAX has gained 0.92% at the time of publication Thursday, on top of three consecutive days of near 2% gains each. The nations' Factory Orders grew by a meager 0.5% MoM in September, missing the 2% growth consensus.

France's CAC 40 index rallied by 0.91% on last check Thursday, while Spain's IBEX 35 index had gained 0.95%.

Forex Trading: U.S. Dollar Index futures retreated 0.21% to 93.218 at press time Thursday. The dollar has weakened 0.15% against the Euro to $1.1740, 0.24% against the Sterling Pound to $1.3016, 0.12% against the Japanese Yen to ¥104.33, and 0.11% to CNY 6.6404.

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