08Nov2016 Market Close: Major Indexes Close After A Choppy Late Afternoon Session, Gold And Crude Prices Down Fractionally

Wall Street rise as traders bet on Clinton election win

(Reuters) – U.S. stocks rose for a second straight session on Tuesday as investors bet Democrat Hillary Clinton would probably win the U.S. presidential election.

Ireland to formally submit appeal on Apple case this week

DUBLIN (Reuters) – Ireland’s government will this week formally submit its appeal against the European Commission’s multi-billion-euro demand for back taxes from Apple, Finance Minister Michael Noonan said on Tuesday.

Exclusive: AB InBev attracts at least six bids for Pilsner Urquell, other brands -sources

LONDON/WARSAW (Reuters) – At least six indicative offers have been submitted by industry players and buyout funds for a group of beer brands being sold by Anheuser-Busch InBev , sources familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.

Banks warn clients to brace for FX volatility after U.S. vote

LONDON (Reuters) – Major banks have formally told clients to expect volatile currency markets in the aftermath of Tuesday’s U.S. presidential election, with the gap between buying and selling prices that determines the cost of trading expected to widen sharply if Donald Trump were to win.

Wal-Mart sued over sale of fake ‘Egyptian cotton’ linen

(Reuters) – Wal-Mart Stores Inc was sued on Tuesday on behalf of consumers who said the world’s largest retailer sold products falsely labeled “100 % Egyptian Cotton” from an Indian textile company for many years after it first became suspicious of their origin.

U.S., Canadian dollars rise with Mexico peso as markets bet on Clinton win

NEW YORK (Reuters) – The dollar rose against the safe-haven Japanese yen and Swiss franc on Tuesday while the Mexican peso and Canadian dollar gained as investors upped their bets on a win for Democrat Hillary Clinton in the U.S. presidential election.

Hertz’s market value halves after company slashes forecast

(Reuters) – Hertz Global Holding Inc lost more than half its market value on Tuesday after the U.S. car rental company wrote down the value of some of its fleet, forcing it to slash its full-year profit forecast.

Oil prices edge higher with Wall St as the U.S. votes

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Oil prices edged higher on Tuesday after trading either side of unchanged all morning, keeping crude in line with a small increase in U.S. stock markets as voters headed to the polls to elect the next president of the United States.

Exlusive: Rosneft state owner may help Rosneft with funds for buyback – sources

MOSCOW (Reuters) – Rosneftegaz [ROSNG.UL], the state holding company that controls Russian oil major Rosneft, is considering helping Rosneft finance the buyback of some of its shares in Rosneft, three sources with knowledge of the discussions said.

“It’s Quiet, Too Quiet” – Stocks, Peso Bid But Hedgers Panic Buying Protection In US, Mexico

Could be worse… right?

A mixed day with some markets shrugging…

G7 FX Vol dropped…

Mexican Peso rallied…

Stocks rallied and VIX dropped…

And some markets turmoiling…

US Equity Put/Call ratio hit a record high…

Bearish bets on Mexico also soared to a record high…

< …

This Election Marks the Beginning of Volatility

Submitted by Jared Dillian via Mauldin Economics

Volatility is high going into this election (because nobody knows what will happen, and there is a lot at stake). People think that after the election, the uncertainty will be out of the way, and volatility will subside.

Will it?

Here are the ways this election could go wrong

Let’s think about this a little bit.

There are a bunch of ways that this election can go wrong:

Gary Johnson wins New Mexico, neither Clinton nor Trump can get to 270 electoral votes, and the election is thrust into the House of Representatives

Evan McMullin wins Utah, neither Clinton nor Trump can get to 270 electoral votes, and the election is thrust into the House of Representatives

Clinton wins, and Trump refuses to concede

Trump wins, and Clinton refuses to concede

States like North Carolina and Florida are a tossup, and the outcome of the election isn’t known for weeks

Reports of election fraud (on either side)

Reports of foreign interference in the election

And that doesn’t include the things we haven’t thought of (including the dreaded electoral college/popular vote split), and can’t think of, because they’re true black swans.

For those of you who were around during the prolonged recount of 2000—do you remember the effect the election had on the equity markets? It was not bullish.

I was in New York at the time, interviewing at Lehman Br …

We’re All Hedge Funds Now – Central Banks Become World’s Biggest Stock Speculators

Submitted by John Rubino via DollarCollapse.com,

At first, the idea of central banks intervening in the equity markets was probably seen even by its fans as a temporary measure. But that’s not how government power grabs work. Control once acquired is hard for politicians and their bureaucrats to give up. Which means recent events are completely predictable:

SNB’s U.S. Stock Holdings Hit $62.4 Billion

(Bloomberg) – The value of the Swiss National Bank’s portfolio of U.S. equities rose nearly 1 percent to a record in the three months through September on the back of rallying share prices.

The holdings increased to $62.4 billion from $61.8 billion at the end of June, according to calculations by Bloomberg based on the central bank’s regulatory filing to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and published on Monday.

The central bank had stakes in some 2,500 companies listed in the U.S., according to the SEC filing. Its biggest holdings were Apple Inc., Microsoft Corp. and Exxon Mobil Corp., according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

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Voting Machine “Irregularities” Reported in Utah, Tennessee, Pennsylvania, & North Carolina

Who could have seen this coming?

People in numerous states reported problems voting Tuesday due to faulty machines, according to numerous news sources.

As NY Daily News reports,

In Utah, voting machine problems in the southern part of the state forced poll workers to use paper ballots, with some residents sent to alternate voting locations.

Machine issues were reported in Wilson County, Tenn. — and at one point all of the county’s machines went down, according to local reports. Voting later resumed manually.

In Texas, a computer used by election clerks malfunctioned at a polling place, so officials briefly diverted voters to another polling place more than two miles away.

In Louisiana, some early voters were forced to wait as correct machines were installed.

In Durham County, N.C., paper poll books were being used Tuesday due to “tech problems at a few sites.

In Georgia, one voter reported that “half the machines” were down at one location. Two polling places in Gwinnett County opened late, officials told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Machine issues were also reported by voters in Rahway, N.J., as well as Philadelphia.

…

Investors Cast Their Votes for Companies Trashed by Trump

Shares of companies Donald Trump has directly attacked had an even bigger relief rally than the broader market on Monday.

Warning Light Flashes on Auto Loans

After surging in recent years, stress is starting to show in the auto-loan market.

Calm Seas Precede Looming Storm for Oil Tankers

Crude-oil tanker rates have done surprisingly well in recent weeks, but a glut of new vessels and brimming inventories will trump any modest increase in demand.

Personal Finance Daily: Donald Trump won this election competition and where are you watching election night results?

Tuesday’s top personal finance stories

Market Extra: U.S. presidential election angst obscures 5 bullish facts about the stock market

It has been a tumultuous ride for Wall Street investors during this record U.S. presidential election. The drama-filled race between Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton and Republican rival Donald Trump likely will come to a conclusion on Election Day 2016 on Tuesday.

The Tell: How the stock market performs on, and after, Election Day

Stocks have a tendency to decline once the votes are counted, say researchers at Bespoke.