Stocks are higher across the board on Monday on the perception Hillary Clinton’s road to the White House was unblocked by the FBI again clearing her on any wrongdoing with regard to her emails. Markets convulsed into nervous relief with stocks and the dollar in demand and havens like gold and bonds getting dumped.
The FTSE 100 participated in the relief rally, leaping over 1% to touch 6,800, helped by a drop in the British pound as the US dollar rose. Well-received earnings from HSBC and a pickup in bond yields helped send financial shares higher. Another daily surge in the price of industrial metals including copper meant mining companies were amongst the top risers.
HSBC (LON:HSBA) shares rose over 4% following the publication of third quarter results. Profits crashed 86% year-over-year because of losses in selling its Brazil business but a 7% rise in adjusted profits beat expectations. The rise in underlying profits in combination with a solid core tier one capital ratio suggest the restructuring of HSBC is coming together in a measured way, and improves the outlook for the dividend.
Tesco (LON:TSCO) shares dipped 3% but pulled well off the lows by mid-morning after many Tesco Bank current account customers were hit by fraud, forcing the suspension of online transactions. Tesco is one of the handful of challenger banks looking to take on customer lethargy at the Big Four banks. Shares of other challenger banks including Metro Bank (LON:MTRO) and Aldermore (LON:ALD) fell since the perception of insecurity from this fraud will not help the cause of current account switching.
US markets look set for a higher on rising hopes of a Hillary Clinton Presidential victory and a continuation of the status quo in the USA. After dipping below 18,000 last week the Dow Jones is expected to easily top 18,100 with a gain of over 200pts on the open. Earnings from Hertz (NYSE:HTZ), MGM Resorts (NYSE:MGM) and Caesars Entertainment (NASDAQ:CZR) are likely to take a backseat to election news.
USA pre-opening levels
S&P 500: 29 points higher at 2,114
Dow Jones: 238 points higher at 18,126
Nasdaq 100: 75 points higher at 4,735
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