U.S. Election Results: Sensex, Nifty End See-Saw Session Higher

The U.S. election battle between Donald Trump and Joe Biden remains a close call with results now hinging on the key battleground states where counting was still on.

Both, the Democrats and the Republicans, are now bracing for drawn-out counting process that could take many more hours to resolve. Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, North Carolina, Georgia, Michigan and Nevada are the key states which may determine this year’s winner.

President Donald Trump jumped the gun and falsely declared that he had won the re-election bid. Calling the ongoing vote counting a “fraud on American public”, Trump said he would ask the Supreme Court to intervene.

“Frankly we did win this election,” he said. “So we’ll be going to the U.S. Supreme Court. We want all voting to stop.”

Minutes after his comments, the Associated Press declared that Biden had won Arizona, a state Trump won in 2016. It is the first state to flip in the election and complicates the president’s path to re-election.

The results so far give Biden a 238-213 lead in the Electoral College. The first candidate to reach 270 will claim the presidency.

Catch latest U.S. election updates here.

Indian equity markets ended a highly fluctuating day with gains, extending their winning streak for the third straight day.

The S&P BSE Sensex ended 0.9% higher at 40,616, while the NSE Nifty 50 index managed to end above the mark of 11,900, ending with gains of 0.8% at 11,908.

The Nifty Bank too had a volatile trading day, trading in a broad range of over 800 points. The index recovered over 600 points from the day's low to end 0.3% higher at 25,771.

The Nifty Pharma index was the top sectoral gainer in today's session, ending 2.2% higher while the I.T. index too ended with gains of 1.8%.

The Nifty Realty index was the top sectoral laggard; ending 1.9% lower.

IndusInd Bank ended as the top gainer on the Nifty, with gains of 4.9%. 33 out of the 50 index constituents gained. UPL ended lower for the third straight day and was the top Nifty laggard for most parts of the session, down 3.9%.

Broader markets had a mixed picture at the close of trade. The Nifty Midcap index ended 0.6% higher while the Nifty Smallcap index ended little changed.

India Volatility index ended off the day's low, but down 4.3% at 23.2.

949 stocks on the NSE ended with gains while 868 stocks declined.

U.S. stock futures fluctuated while Treasuries jumped after President Donald Trump called for Supreme Court to intervene in the counting of votes.

Contracts on the S&P 500 benchmark swung from losses to gains. Futures on the Nasdaq 100 remained up 1.5% for most of the day. Ten-year Treasury yields fell to 0.76% while the dollar strengthened.

Earlier, Trump falsely claimed an election victory even as several battleground states were still counting votes.

Elsewhere, the Stoxx Europe 600 Index was little changed while the MSCI Asia Pacific Index climbed 0.3%.

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. tumbled 7.5% in Hong Kong after China halted the initial public offering of Ant Group Co., in which Alibaba owns one-third stake. Asian stocks were mixed with Japan outperforming and Australia lagging.

Related Coverage

• Two Bad Election Scenarios Come Back To Haunt Global Markets
• Here’s What Some Market Watchers Are Saying About The U.S. Election

Post Trump’s Address, the S&P 500 and Dow futures Have Given Up Gains To Extend Losses.

• Benchmark indices hold on to gains
• Nifty up 0.7% at 11,889
• Sensex up 0.74% at 40,557
• Nifty Midcap index up 0.5%
• Nifty Smallcap index up 0.2%
• India Volatility Index down 5.8% to 22.81
• Nifty I.T. and Nifty Pharma remain top sectoral gainers; up 2.4% each
• Nifty Realty remains top sectoral laggard; down 1.3%
• Nifty Auto, Nifty FMCG gain over 0.8% each
• Sun Pharma remains the top Nifty gainer; up 4.8%
• Axis Bank is the top Nifty laggard; down 3.4%
• 953 stocks on the NSE are trading with gains while 793 are declining

Emerging-market stocks and currencies swung between gains and losses as U.S. election tallies suggested the outcome of the presidential vote will be closer than polls had predicted.

Both benchmark indices, Nifty 50 and Sensex, came off the day’s high but remained in the green.

• The Nifty 50 was up 0.3% at 11,847 as of 10:20 a.m.
• The BSE Sensex was up 0.28% at 40,374.76.
• Nifty Bank down 0.9% at 25,472
• Nifty Midcap index up 0.1%
• Nifty Smallcap index up 0.5%
• India Volatility Index down 5.6% to 22.86
• Nifty I.T. extends gains as the top sectoral gainer; up 2.5%
• Nifty Realty is the top sectoral laggard; down 1.6%
• Sun Pharma remains the top Nifty gainer; up 5%
• UPL remains the top Nifty laggard; down 4.2%
• 893 stocks on the NSE trade with gains while 749 are declining

The rupee has opened weak in today's trading session, after it snapped a three-day losing streak on Tuesday. The currency opened at 74.80 against the U.S. Dollar, as compared to Tuesday's close of 74.40.

The rupee emerged as the worst performing currency among its emerging market peers in the early minutes of trading.

Treasuries jumped, the dollar climbed and U.S. equity futures pushed higher as early tallies suggested the outcome of the American presidential election could be closer than polls had suggested.

• S&P 500 futures gained 1.4% as of 1:21 p.m. in Tokyo. The index rose 1.8% on Tuesday.
• Nasdaq 100 contracts rose 3.1%.
• Japan’s Topix index advanced 1.4%.
• Hang Seng and Shanghai Composite were little changed.
• South Korea’s Kospi index rose 0.6%.
• Euro Stoxx 50 futures advanced 0.3%.

Currencies

• The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose 0.7%.
• The yen dipped 0.6% to 105.08 per dollar.
• The offshore yuan fell 0.7% to 6.7283 per dollar.
• The euro bought $1.1637, down 0.7%.

Commodities

• West Texas Intermediate crude rose 2.6% to $38.63 a barrel.
• Gold was at $1,897.01 an ounce, down 0.6%.

Indian equity markets continued to trade higher, following American markets as the country tallies votes for its presidential election.

• The BSE Sensex Index rose 337 points, up 0.84% to 40,598.57 points as of 9:55 a.m.
• The Nifty 50 Index rose 0.7% to 11,899.35.

PVR Shares Rise After Lockdown Rent Waiver; Discounts

Multiplex chain PVR Cinema Ltd. gained as much as 8% - the most in over a month to Rs 1,189, in early trading. The multiplex player on Tuesday said that it has managed to reach settlements for more than 60% of cinemas for complete rent waiver for the lockdown periods and significant discounts post reopening.

• Nifty up 0.4% at 11,860
• Sensex up 0.43% at 40,455
• Nifty Bank unchanged at 25,669
• Nifty Midcap index and Nifty Smallcap index up 0.3% each
• Nifty Media index is the top sectoral gainer; up 1.8%
• Nifty I.T. and Nifty Pharma index up 1.1% each
• India Volatility Index down 3.3% to 23.42
• Sun Pharma is the top Nifty gainer; up 2.8%
• 37 out of the 50 index constituents advance
• UPL is the top Nifty laggard; down 2%
• 926 stocks on the NSE trade with gains while 562 are declining

Indian equity markets may open marginally lower as suggested in the pre-open session.

The S&P BSE Sensex was down 100 points while the NSE Nifty 50 index is down 0.3% in pre-open trade. This after the SGX Nifty futures saw fluctuations all through early morning, in-line with the fluctuations in the U.S. equity futures.

Indian equity markets may open marginally lower as suggested in the pre-open session.

• Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rises 0.3%
• Yield on 10-year Treasuries falls to 0.81%
• WTI crude gains 1.5%

Here’s a look at how Emerging Market currencies are faring against the U.S. Dollar.

Nasdaq futures gained over 3.8%, rallying amid U.S. electoral results pouring in.

Adani Ports: Guides for FY21 revenue to be between Rs 12,500 - Rs 13,000 crore and Ebitda to range between Rs 8,000 - Rs 8,500 crore. Expects net debt-equity to return to target range of 3-3.5x by FY22.

Ajanta Pharma: Announces share buyback worth Rs 136 crore. Board to buyback 7.35 lakh shares or 0.84% of total equity at Rs 1,850 per share. The buyback price is a 15% premium to Tuesday's closing price. Record date for the same has been set as November 13.

PVR: Got complete rent waiver on lockdown period on 60% of its screens and significant discounts on reopening. Has secured permission to re-open 575 out of the total 831 screens.

Dabur: Brokerages raise price targets after Q2 earnings beat.

Read More.

The dollar continues to gain, even against other haven currencies like the Japanese yen and the Swiss Franc.

• Nasdaq futures are gaining as well -- that’s another defensive bid echoing through the markets.
• Emerging market currencies and the offshore yuan are continuing to fade.

The Singapore-traded SGX Nifty, an early indicator of the Nifty 50 Index’s performance in India, fell 0.55% to 11,761 as of 8:30 a.m.

U.S. equity futures swung and Treasuries surged as early tallies suggested the outcome of the American presidential election could be closer than polls had suggested.

S&P 500 futures retreated after earlier rising over 1%, though Nasdaq 100 contracts pointed higher. Benchmark Treasury yields reversed sharply, falling toward 0.8% after earlier surpassing 0.9%.

The dollar erased losses and pushed higher. Oil extended Monday’s gains.

Oil prices are rising in early trade, with WTI crude up 1.75% to over $38 per barrel. Brent crude gains for the third day. Gold continued to trade 0.4% lower.

Gold spot fell 0.3% to $1,903.90 as of 6:54 a.m., reversing the 0.37% rise seen earlier. Oil pared gains, up 1.2% compared to an earlier rise of as much as 3.4%.

Other Commodities

• Brent for January settlement climbed 1% to $40.10 on the ICE Futures Europe exchange.
• Copper dropped 0.3% to 6,796 a ton on the London Metal Exchange
• Soybeans were little changed at $1,064 1/2 a bushel

S&P 500 futures tumbled from session highs and briefly turned negative as the state of Florida appears to leaning to President Trump in early voting. Trump was favored to win the state.

December contracts on the S&P 500 wiped out an advance that reached 1% to trade little changed as of 7:45 p.m. in New York. The cash index jumped 3% in the past two days. Treasuries erased a decline, with 10-year yield near 0.9%.

• The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index fell 0.6%.
• The yen fell 0.1% to 104.54 per dollar.
• The offshore yuan traded at 6.6570 per dollar, up 0.4%.
• The euro bought $1.1764, up 0.4%.

Asian stocks rose along with U.S. equity futures as investors awaited the outcome of the American presidential election.

• Japan’s Topix index advanced 1.6%.
• South Korea’s Kospi index rose 1.2%.
• Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index slipped 0.2%.

Donald Trump easily won two Republican strongholds in Indiana and Kentucky on Tuesday, a bright spot for the president on an election night that polls predict would not end his way, according to the Associated Press and networks. Democrat Joe Biden won Vermont’s 3 electoral votes.

The home states of Vice President Mike Pence and Senate Majority leader Mitch McConnell gave Trump 19 electoral votes on his way to the 270 needed to claim re-election.

Read More.

Commodity traders steadied themselves for a potentially wild ride as voting wrapped up across the eastern U.S. in a historic year that’s seen more than 9 million Americans infected by the coronavirus, a crash in global demand for goods and sub-zero oil prices.

Oil in New York rose more than 2% at the open, while spot gold edged higher. The U.S. dollar fell as polling stations started to close. Market uncertainty may lead to heightened volatility over the next few hours as traders react to headlines and early clues of a possible Donald Trump or Joe Biden victory.

• West Texas Intermediate for December delivery rose 2.3% to $38.54 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange as of 7:32 a.m. in Singapore.
• Brent for January settlement climbed 1.9% to $39.71 on Tuesday on the ICE Futures Europe exchange.
• Spot gold added 0.3% to $1,915.34 per ounce

U.S. stock futures gained as investors awaited the outcome of the presidential election, with the first polls closing in Indiana and Kentucky. That’s after the biggest two-day rally since September. Treasury futures slid as investors speculated America would get a clear election decision and Congress will deliver a spending bill this year.

December contracts on the S&P 500 rose 0.9% as of 6:42 p.m. in New York. The cash index jumped 3% in the past two days.

The dollar fell and Treasury futures dropped as trading kicked off in Asia, with cash 10-year yields implied to rise another two basis points following Tuesday’s selloff.

Democratic nominee Joe Biden leads President Donald Trump in the final polls, with some investors speculating his victory would bring a surge in federal spending. Treasuries fell and a gauge of the dollar dropped the most in more than three weeks. Oil extended Monday’s gains.

• S&P 500 futures added 0.5% as of 8:12 a.m. in Tokyo. The index rose 1.8% on Tuesday.
• Futures on Japan’s Nikkei 225 advanced 0.8% in Singapore.
• Hang Seng futures dropped 0.8%.
• Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index slid 0.1%.

The months-long contest for the White House will end today with either Republican incumbent Donald Trump or Former Vice President and Democrat Joe Biden being elected as the U.S. President.

Voting began last night but is expected to continue with the last pocket of ballot to be cast by 11 a.m. The polls, in the middle of a deadly global pandemic, have been standout as it saw a record-shattering one hundred million voters cast their ballot early—either by mail or early in-person—and not wait for the election day.

The campaigning for the election has been marked by deep polarisation between the two major political fronts of the U.S. Both sides have, on multiple occasions, warned that a vote for the other could be devastating for the country.

The Road To Victory

The U.S. elections aren’t administered by a single federal body like in India. That means each one of the 50 states have their own rules on the voting process.

For both Trump and Biden, 270 electoral votes is the magic number. The candidate that secures a majority of the 538 electoral college votes will be declared the winner. To do so, they have to notch up more votes than their rival in each state, to be allocated that state’s quota of electoral college votes on a winner-takes-all basis.

The Timeline

Starting 7 p.m. Eastern Time on Tuesday in the U.S. (5:30 a.m. on Wednesday in India), polls will start closing as per the laws in each state and the time zone it is in. Find a comprehensive hour-by-hour guide on what to watch for, here.

As the Covid-19 outbreak ravaged many communities in the U.S. over the course of 2020, officials in some states grappled with complex issues of safe voting ballot processing. Rules in some states allow for officials there to keep all those early votes cast before election day to be processed, scanned, counted before election day, while others don’t.

Early votes in Florida, Colorado, Arizona, North Carolina, and large counties in Texas have been kept counted, while those in Michigan, Georgia, Iowa, Minnesota, Nevada, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin will only be counted today.

The Map

Both parties enjoy robust support in large pockets of the country that the other has traditionally found difficult to overcome. The Democratic Party tends to carry the states on the west coast and north-eastern seaboard. The Republican Party’s numbers come from a number of states between those coasts, and in the American south.

On that map are ‘swing’ states that moved from Barack Obama in 2008 and 2012 to Trump in 2016. As a result, these battleground states tend to matter more than others, because they are the path to securing the 270 Electoral College votes to win the presidency.